OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — For the first time in 12 years, a woman was promoted to the ranking of Captain within the Omaha Fire Department.
Danielle Landholm says her new role comes with responsibility.
"I think it really kind of comes with a certain responsibility and how I portray myself to the community and to the department. We have an amazing opportunity to reach people in a different way and being a person they see and look at when they’re out in the public and when you’re going to calls," Landholm said.
She's been with OFD for eight years now and says she wanted to explore the leadership side of the career.
"The process in itself is pretty extensive it requires a lot of time studying, different types of material," Landholm said. "You really have to sit down and get out of your comfort zone and learn how to speak to other people about things. But also going over material you might not have looked at for some time when it comes down to breaking it down to the basics and making sure you have all of that information. There’s people relying on you for that information and it’s really important that you know and understand what you’re looking at and talking about and so all that comes through in the testing process."
Landholm passed the test and was in the first round of promotional opportunity, which she called exciting.
"It’s a very competitive testing process so to make it past the initial step and move forward is an accomplishment. Then as you go through the testing process you get ranked in the different orders and to find where you're at and knowing that you’re going to be in that first round of promotional opportunity it was pretty exciting," Landholm said.
Fire Battalion Chief Scott Fitzpatrick said when they interview candidates to fill the positions, the department is looking for someone who can be a leader to their crews and a role model for the Omaha community.
"I’ve seen her progress through the Omaha Fire Department and I know that she’s very deserving and studied hard and worked hard to get to this point in her career. It just goes with showing that hard work and determination definitely pays off," Fitzpatrick said.
Landholm says she wants her accomplishment to empower women and girls to to not limit themselves.
"If there’s anything that comes out of this achievement it’s that success is possible in this career and really you’re limitations are only what you accept and what you let them be," Landholm said.
