By Staff Writer Zoe Winfield
Bradyn Harvey graduated from ENMU-Ruidoso with an Associate in Wildland Fire Science in 2022. He graduated with honors and is currently working on getting his Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences with a Concentration in Emergency Management. He plans to graduate in December 2023. Brandyn has worked in timber and forestry management for 27 years as a hotshot, a smokejumper, and is now managing fires and other hotshots as a wildland firefighter. When asked how Brandyn became interested in his line of work he said, “It was something that came naturally.”
Brandyn knew he wanted to work with forest fires since he was 19. He was told by a professor that he should be a hotshot, and he took that advice to heart. Hotshots are a team of trained professionals that are able to help handle all phases of a fire, sometimes having to go into the hottest parts of the fires. After he worked as a hotshot, he started working as a smokejumper. Smokejumpers jump into the heart of the fire and help extinguish the flames. Both of these jobs require lots of hard work and bravery, as they fight fires in an unknown environment. However, helping families and communities is the most rewarding part of Brandyn’s job, despite how hard the job can be.
Brandyn was drawn towards ENMU because of how small the classes were. He said, “ENMU has great tuition rates and a great student to teacher ratio, as well as great professors.” Some of the professors that Bradyn said helped him the most were Larry Nelson and Hank Hargis. Brandyn recommends that anybody interested in this line of work, “Definitely take the Wildland Fire Science Program at ENMU-Ruidoso.” While Bradyn was getting his associates, he was on the Dean’s list. He also was named The Student of the Year for the 2021-2022 school year. When Brandyn isn’t fighting forest fires, he enjoys riding his dirt bike, snowboard, and take care of his two dogs Timber and Taho.