A woman with the Lansing Fire Department made history Thursday.
Captain Shawn Deprez was promoted to the rank of Battalion Chief in the Fire Suppression Division.
From a young age, Deprez always knew she wanted to be a firefighter.
"I just love helping people in general," she said. " I just feel like that was what I was made to do"
In June of 1995, she started as a firefighter at the Lansing Fire Department and quickly moved up the ranks.
Twenty-one years later, she's now Lansing's first Battalion Chief .
"It's a great time in my career," Deprez adds.
Her predecessor and her co-workers say this is not a token promotion.
Robert Oleson, retired Lansing Battalion Chief and mentor to Deprez,
says he knew she was going to be taking over his position some day.
"She's earned her new position through hard work, dedication, and sacrifice," said Dan Komm, Local 421 Vice President of the Lansing Fire Department.
He says she is a go-getter and a self- starter.
"We know she is going to do a fantastic job," says Charles Stadt, firefighter paramedic at the Lansing Fire Department. "It's business as usual."
