Firefighters as Lifelines for Burn Survivors
Nobody chooses to be severely burned. Yet the American Burn Association reports that well over 1,200 Americans are burned in one way or another every single day. The majority are burned by flames.
Firefighters are most often the first to arrive when severe burn injuries occur. From the moment they step onto the scene of an emergency, their impact begins — and for some, that impact continues for years.
It happens through their partnership with Burns Recovered. For more than 40 years, Burns Recovered has served burn survivors of all ages in the Midwest through its mission of care for each one. Firefighters and departments can be significantly involved in the healing process for burn survivors in multiple ways long after the fire trucks have returned home.
From the very beginning, firefighters have been an essential part of the Burns Recovered community of love and support. Individual firefighters and several fire departments have consistently shown up—volunteering time, raising funds, and inspiring hope for burn survivors in the Midwest. As first responders who witness the immediate aftermath of burn incidents, they bring a unique perspective and empathy to the burn community. Some firefighters form lasting relationships with burn survivors; relationships rooted in compassion, recovery, and the belief that every burn survivor deserves a full and vibrant life.
Burns Recovered began in 1983 through the efforts of several burn survivors, volunteers, and staff at the St. John’s Mercy Hospital Burn Unit in St. Louis. When Linda and Gary Hansen joined ten years later in 1993, their vision and dedication transformed the organization into what it is today: a lifeline for burn survivors across the Midwest through programs that support healing and empowerment.
Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, burn peer support and assistance programs expanded across Missouri and beyond, creating a strong community built on healing, resilience, and the shared belief that no burn survivor should face recovery alone.
In 1997 the Hansens launched the Missouri Children’s Burn Camp—later renamed the Midwest Children’s Burn Camp (MCBC)—as a free, weeklong overnight camp in the Missouri wilderness for youth burn survivors ages 6 to 17. Today, as in the beginning, Burn Camp provides a safe, supportive environment where children who have been burned can rebuild confidence, form lasting friendships, and experience the joys of childhood without judgment. Over 30 years after its founding, the Midwestern Children’s Burn Camp is still the only burn camp in Missouri and Kansas.
Next summer, Burn Camp will welcome about 70 kids – some newly burned, others returning from previous years. For many, Burn Camp becomes a life-saving anchor, a place of belonging and hope. Some campers return as counselors to give back to others what they once received. “Midwest Children’s Burn Camp was the first place that I didn’t have to include burn survivor in my introduction of myself,” says Claire Jolly, a former camper turned counselor. “I was still a burn survivor, but I got to be a kid first.”
This strong sense of community has allowed Burns Recovered to expand its programs to serve a broader range of burn survivors. For example, the Burn Survivor Peer Support Program connects new survivors in acute care with others who have walked the same path—offering words of comfort, courage, and understanding. One of the current priorities of Burns Recovered is to review and expand this program.
Another vital initiative is the Adult Life Retreat, started in 2024 This weekend-long retreat offers support, fellowship, and healing to adult burn survivors over 21, helping them overcome insecurities and rediscover their best selves. Similarly, the Changing Times Young Adult Retreat provides support for burn survivors aged 18–21, offering a safe space to discuss topics such as intimacy, financial responsibility, and planning for the future.
Family Camp, introduced in 2022, was an immediate success. This weekend-long retreat for survivors and their families focuses on play, growth, and building confidence together. All Burns Recovered programs share one goal: to build community and empowerment through shared experiences.
From serving on the Board of Directors to volunteering at Burn Camp and raising funds, members of the fire service play a vital role in bringing dedication, leadership, and heart to every program. One example of this commitment comes from the small Fruitland Area Fire Protection District. Their annual “Fill the Helmet” event consistently raises $10,000 for Burn Camp. Their motivation is simple and is summed up by Lo Tomlin, a burn survivor and current camp counselor, “Getting to help these kids be just kids for one week is incredible and seeing how much they grow in just a week, is mind blowing! The memories they make at camp, they’ll have forever.”
A second example is the City of St. Louis Fire Department that hosts an annual volleyball tournament. This year they had 20 teams and raised $10,000. The Gravois Fire Protection District holds a rib fundraiser, the Columbia Fire Association holds an annual golf tournament, and the Glendale, MO Fire Department also runs a “Fill the Helmet” event. These events and other ways of contributing check off three boxes: They generate awareness of people who have been burned, raise funds to deliver programs, and draw attention to the importance of safety. No matter the size of the event or the amount of money raised, this is how the gifts of hope and opportunity for burn survivors become a part of our various communities.
Money is essential. Money, at its core, is simply fuel that enables other things to happen. In this case, the fuel creates various programs, including Burn Camp. The camp is 100% free, including transportation, for all campers. Many families face extreme financial hardship for various reasons, including unwieldly medical expenses. For many families, an experience like Burn Camp would simply be out of reach financially if fees were not covered. Other programs are offered at a low cost.
At $2,500 per camper, the generosity of firefighters and other supporters ensures that every child can attend regardless of circumstance. Burn Camp is funded completely by the financial gifts and investments of individuals, foundations, and fire departments. Close to 20 fire departments are currently partnering with Burns Recovered in different ways. Burns Recovered is working to grow that number. “Our hope”, says Bethany Westlake, chair of the board of Directors, “is that this number will double over the next several years. The fire service is a natural partnership where we can do something good together that none of us can do alone.”
Firefighters’ involvement with burn survivors is an extension of their calling to serve. By partnering with Burns Recovered they see the positive outcomes of their giving and volunteering and can be proud of helping develop resilience in the lives of those they once rescued. They can become mentors, friends, and role models, helping survivors heal emotionally as well as physically. Their participation also promotes fire safety education and fosters therapeutic healing for firefighters who may carry emotional scars from traumatic calls.
For decades, the fire service has stood shoulder to shoulder with Burns Recovered to ensure that burn survivors continue to heal, rebuild, and thrive. This partnership embodies the true spirit of service—protecting lives, restoring hope, and strengthening communities. Firefighters’ compassion and commitment transform recovery into resilience and tragedy into triumph.
In the end, we all want the same. To live in safe communities and to find support during our times of need. We all want to belong to a loving family, and experience “community” in our week to week living. We want to be accepted for who we are, and do not want to be defined by our scars, whether those scars are on the outside, as they are for burn survivors, or on the inside, which is all of us.
This is what Burns Recovered, and its Fire Service partners are working to do together.
The last word is from Chelsea who, at age 13, was burned in a house fire and pulled out unresponsive. She was revived three times and spent months relearning how to walk, run, and use her hands again. She was left with a new face, a new body, and a lot of pain, both physical and emotional. She did not want to go anywhere or be seen by anyone.
“I came to burn camp wrapped in garments and a clear face shield, terrified of being stared at but instead, I walked into a room full of kids who looked like me. For the first time, I wasn’t “different.” I was just me. And I remember feeling like I could breathe again. Like it was all going to be alright. To every firefighter counselor, volunteer, and donor, thank you. You didn’t just create a camp. You created a family, a place where kids learn to laugh again, live again, and shine, brighter than ever.”
www.burnsrecovered.org • brsg@brsg.org
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