George Rabiela, left, was photographed in February 2000 by Robert A. Davis as part of the CITY 2000 photodocumentary project. I interviewed him in September 2000 in his office above the Chicago Fire Department’s “Survive Alive” house.
He worked in factories. I believe one of the companies he worked for was a box company. Then when my ma came, she worked in a knitting company, on the north side, Schuessler Knitting Mills. She used to run a machine. She’d knit Bears stocking caps and stuff like that. She got profit sharing from that and she retired. She’s now living in Acapulco in a big house right off the cliff.
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At Roosevelt and May I remember there was a big fire in the building. I had to be four or five years old. The landlord was a little intoxicated. He went down into the basement because the pipes were frozen. It was the middle of the winter, and he took a blowtorch to thaw them. I remember a fireman holding me in his arms and he gave me a piece of fruit. I think it was an orange or an apple, I can’t remember, but I remember being in his arms. And then, the ironic thing was, that’s where God sent me to be a fireman to start off my career, right at that house. The very first station I was assigned to was Engine 18, which is on Roosevelt and May.
When I took the exam I was 19 years old, and I got on the department when I was 23. That’s around when they first started the affirmative action. It was February 16, 1977, and I looked at it as a great job. I was ten years as a fireman, then I got promoted to lieutenant, and from lieutenant I went to captain. I was a captain for six years.
I have a beautiful job, educating our children and our seniors about fire safety. For the little guys, we have our “Survive Alive” house downstairs. It’s like a theatrical experience for them. We have a little house, we smoke it up, the kids lay in bed, we show ’em how to crawl out of bed when they hear the sound of the smoke detector, crawl to the door, feel the door, open it if it’s not hot, crawl out–and it’s a regular house, they go through the front room, or through the kitchen or through the window, depending on what scenario we give them. This is hands-on experience. You can’t train this in the home.
