The COVID-19 pandemic has stretched many first responders thin, with both paramedics and firefighters working hard to keep up with their community’s needs. More firefighters and paramedics are needed at many Central Florida fire departments. 

One young man has plans to join the Seminole County Fire Department as soon as he is done with school and he has got the community behind him in helping him achieve his lifelong dream. 

“I feel like I was born to do this, to help people,” said Seth Reynolds, a future firefighter and Seminole County native. 

Hopping into action, EMT student Reynolds gets a crash course on safety during his first few weeks of EMT school.

It's tough, but “I love it,” Reynolds said, who recently graduated high school in 2021. 

Inside the classroom of First Response Training Group in Orlando, Reynolds studies alongside other EMT students. But after class lets out, he often meets up for some hands-on training with Seminole County firefighters.  

Lt. Jeff Vining walks Reynolds around the fire station off Red Bug Lake Road in Casselberry, taking him through their daily routine.

Vining has known Reynolds since he was a kid, in awe of the firefighter living down the street. 

“From that day on, he came to my house every day, just wanting to talk to me about the fire service, see my gear, try it on, he’d put my bunker pants on, walk around with the garden hose and be spraying stuff,” Vining said. 

And 15 years later, Reynolds feels like Seminole County fire’s longest-ever intern.

“But to see him come around for the past 15 years on a normal basis, it’s great to see and it’s the kind of guy we’re looking for,” Vining said. 

Vining said he is happy to be able to help Reynolds out now that he is in EMT school and well on his way to becoming a Seminole County firefighter. 

“Yeah, it definitely gives me a head start,” Reynolds said. 

This has been Reynolds’s dream since he turned 3 years old, when the fire department was called for help, showing up at his birthday to help his brother.

“I was 3 years old in this picture so it was maybe like a month after I went in a fire truck," Reynolds said. "And ever since, it’s been a never-ending passion to be in the fire service."

And that dream is now one step closer toward reality.

After losing his mom to cancer when Reynolds was just a teen, he said his best friend’s parents became like a second set of parents. They even loaned him the money to go to EMT school and eventually, become a firefighter. 

“So without them, this wouldn’t be possible. Without Jeff, this wouldn’t be possible," Reynolds said. "I’m very blessed with the people I have in my life that are helping me get to where I am today."

Reynolds said he's grateful knowing that because of that help, he’ll soon have the chance to protect and serve the community he loves.

Vining has organized a Go Fund Me to help Reynolds cover the cost of schooling he'll need to become a firefighter for Seminole County. For more information, visit the website here.

The Gofundme.com site listed is not managed by Spectrum Bay News 9. For more information on how the site works and the rules visit  www.gofundme.com/safety.