Climbing ladders and breaking the ceiling

Captain Kate Shepard on becoming Marysville's first female officer

Update: In January, 2025, Kate Shepard was promoted to the rank of Battalion Chief in charge of Medical Services.

There are roughly 350,000 career firefighters in the United States.

Less than 15,000 are women.

Less than 1,000 of those women hold the rank of Lieutenant or Captain.*

Kate Shepard is one of them.

It wasn’t always meant to be.

“I never thought this would be the career choice for me,” Shepard said. “I wanted to be an art curator or artist.” But at the age of 19, Shepard decided what she really wanted was a challenge – both mentally and physically – and that’s exactly what she found in the fire service.

Shepard worked for the Walla Walla Fire Department and Mount Vernon Fire Department before joining the Marysville Fire District in 2006. By then she had earned degrees in General Art and Paramedicine from Central Washington University and a degree in Fire Science from Everett Community College.

“I thought she was exceptional from the get-go,” Fire Chief Martin McFalls said. “When Kate came to Marysville from Mount Vernon, she already knew how to drive a ladder truck, was a competent paramedic and a skilled firefighter. That’s rare for anyone but especially for a female in a male-dominated trade.”

Decades ago, people mostly equated firefighting with brute strength. Today proper technique, solid decision-making, and physical fitness are more likely to help a firefighter excel – an evolution attracting more women to fire service careers.

“The fire department should represent the demographic of our population,” Shepard said. “Women and men bring something unique and special to the service.”

Marysville Fire District currently employs six full-time female firefighters and two as part-time firefighters (at the time of this article), meaning women make up roughly six percent of the current firefighting force. That’s just below the national average of seven percent, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Chief McFalls would like to see that number go up.

“I have been on calls when I was very glad that we had a female firefighter on our team,” McFalls said. “Many women seem to have a natural ability to diffuse volatile situations and provide comfort when it’s needed the most; that’s not always as easy for men. It is invaluable in our line of work and it is one reason why diversity only makes us stronger.”

Shepard has gained a reputation for her intuitive, compassionate care of both patients and her fellow firefighters. She is actively involved in the Marysville Fire District’s Peer Support Program and runs a wellness blog aimed at improving firefighters’ mental and physical health.

“I always advocate for self-care with everyone I work with - whether that's working out, doing yoga, taking a nap, or fishing,” Songhurst said. “Make sure you take care of you, so you can stay resilient to help others.”

For Shepard, being a helper is what this career is really all about.

“This is an honorable profession where your sole purpose is to make someone's day a little better," she said. "What's not to love?”

While still humble about her new title – “It could have been many wonderful women who came before me,” she says– Shepard is glad to accept the challenge. She also has some advice for the next generation of female firefighters.

“Many doors get shut before someone will take stock in you,” Shepard said. “You need to go into this with grit and hard work.”

They are words she hopes will help ensure that Marysville’s first female captain is just one of many.