It's common to find second-, third- and even fourth-generation firefighters. Maybe you find the same thing in plumbers', electricians' and cops' families, but there's something different about firefighter families. Their commitment to community and to helping others is rare in today's society.

Also amazing is how the fire service industry is flush with families steeped in the business side of the fire service, and whose members often serve as firefighters as well. This struck me on recent road trip to the Missouri Valley when I met four families engrained in the fire business.

Sadly, during my trip we lost the patriarch of one of those well-known fire service families: Don Smeal, the founder of Smeal Fire Apparatus, based in Snyder, Neb. He would have turned 85 in a few weeks. Mr. Smeal opened his welding shop in 1955 and started building fire trucks in 1963. Today, of the Smeals' nine children, five work in the family fire apparatus business, as well as three of their spouses, four grandchildren and one grand-daughter-in-law.

"It's like being home at work," said Don's daughter, Renee Smeal. "The business extends beyond our family. Some of the people who work here came here after high school; it was their first job. This is their business as much as it is ours."

A few blocks away in the same small town, Danko's Daniel Kreikemeier and his family also have built a thriving business manufacturing specialty vehicles and skid units. One of the first to adapt a Hummer for firefighting, Kreikemeier's sons also are involved in the expansion of the company and its new facility.

Overland Park, Kan., is home of WHP Trainingtowers, where Bill and Marilyn Jahnke's employees include three of their five daughters and one of their three sons. Tapping into the family's skills in computers and creativity, the family is also a good resource for busy trade shows.

In Lyons, S.D., Harold and Helen Boer saw the first Central States' fire truck built in their back yard more than 20 years ago. Once again, an idea planted among cornfields grew into acres dotted with an increasing number of buildings that produce solid, American-made fire trucks.

There are many more fire industry families spread across the country. I'm sure there are pros and cons to working in the same business with your family. A fervent hope to help firefighters is probably something they grew up with, as well as being held to a higher standard than most employees. Besides the investment in your own company, there is the investment in the careers of family members. Leaving work behind is probably no easy task for them. Losing a coworker is always tough, but losing one who is also a family member must be worse.

As the next generation of these fire industry families moves into new roles within their organizations, we can be sure of one thing: Most of them were raised in an environment of dedication and commitment to the fire service. That's a family legacy to be proud of.

Janet Wilmoth, Editor