Firefighters still work on day that’s usually celebrated by NOT working

By Emily Brummett, Contributing Writer

Although the day is literally called “Labor Day,” the first Monday in September is traditionally celebrated by NOT laboring. It’s often a time for grilling hot dogs and partying on the lake. Firefighters, however, are still hard at work serving the public.

While most people are soaking up the last days of summer during the holiday weekend, Bentonville Firefighter Kyler Brummett says it’s just another day. “It’s days like today that we need to be on a higher alert,” he says. “Folks are running around town, swimming, grilling, and consuming alcohol. The wrong combination of any of these activities could cause major issues and we need to be ready for that. It’s just another day in our books.”

Firefighters across the country will continue to train and respond to calls regardless of what everyone else is doing on the holiday. Brummett added, “We will often have our families show up to the station on holidays to spend some time together and even eat a meal occasionally. However, it’s really just another day for them as well.”

The schedule of a “fire family” doesn’t change because it’s a holiday. These families are used to a spouse or parent being gone for anywhere from 24 hours to 48 hours. Labor Day just means the kids are out of school and the other spouse is possibly off work. These families continue business as usual.

At the beginning of this courageous career, it can be easy to feel left out during holidays because you’re not able to attend events with family and friends. However, it quickly becomes apparent that this is the lifestyle of one in the fire service. Some families decide to spend time together on a different weekend than the customary celebration or may even skip the barbecues and parties altogether because it doesn’t fit into their family schedule.

            Labor Day is a holiday that should be celebrated with great cheer but should also be commemorated in thanksgiving of all those who continue to labor despite everything going on around them.

Emily Brummett is a student in Mrs. Miller’s fall 2023 Media Writing course. Her husband, Kyler, is a firefighter.

Nurses: The Unsung Heroes of Labor Day

By Efren Chavez, Contributing Writer

To many of us, Labor Day is just a day off work to relax with family and enjoy some summer heat. For some, however, if they were to step away from their jobs even for a day panic and death could arise. One of the professions that I’m talking about is nursing. Without these heroes working while the rest of us are lounging, there would be nobody to care for the hurt.

Ninety percent of Americans get Labor Day off, according to zippa.com. This means that most people can get to enjoy this long weekend with their family. For my family, however, it is a little different because my mother works on this day. My mother is a nurse and Labor Day is just another day for her. This means that even though my dad, my sister and I can enjoy the day together, my mother goes to work. This is great, though, because without her and her coworkers and all fellow nurses going to work there would be nobody working in hospitals. This means that if anybody gets hurt nobody would be able to take care of them during that day.

All essential workers who must go to work on all holidays are heroes. This is clearly shown when you realize that holidays are just like every other day: Accidents happen, people get hurt, and things go wrong. While nurses are just one part of the essential workers, it hits home to me “While working while my family is off having fun is hard for me, it is just another day” Lorena Chavez said. “I still get up and go to work to help people and while yes it is sad to not be with your family, I know that all essential workers know we have a job to do and at the end of the day we know our work is needed and that makes me feel good.”

Statistics indicated that on average, more than 45,000 people go the ER every day.  This means that if nurses or doctors had Labor Day off, 45,000 people would be without care. These are just the injuries that people think need emergency care and do not include urgent care or clinic needs.

While Labor Day is a great day to relax and enjoy the day with your family always remember to be safe and thank the people who are working while we can just lounge around. While nurses are just one part of all essential workers, I believe we should be grateful because without them any injury can become fatal. So, to all nurses and all essential workers thank you for keeping us safe.

Efren Chavez is a student in Mrs. Miller’s 2023 fall Media Writing class.