Behind Austin Conquergood鈥檚 safety visor just a hint of a smile tugs at the corners of his mouth as he stands in close proximity to the flames ripping from the car鈥檚 interior.

That happiness stems from the fact six weeks ago the Princess Margaret grad got the call saying he had been chosen to fill one of two, new, full-time career positions with .

鈥淚t was a great feeling to get that call, it really is a dream come true that鈥檚 for sure,鈥� said Conquergood, 22, as the sweat poured down his face after completing the burning car training exercise at the Number 202 Hall. 鈥淚 was a paid on call (auxiliary) member for about three years and this is what I鈥檝e always wanted to. It鈥檚 awesome and you couldn鈥檛 ask for a better bunch of guys.鈥�

He and the department鈥檚 first female member, Issy 鈥淚zzy鈥� Venables, have been undergoing an intensive training regime in preparation for their placement on the regular department roster.

鈥淛ust working with the crew that I鈥檓 going to be working with and getting those skills and getting their knowledge is critical,鈥� said Conquergood. 鈥淎s a paid on call we don鈥檛 get the hands-on training everyday so this definitely helps. Getting here we may be 90, 95 per cent but we want to get to that 100 per cent and this is the way to do it.鈥�

Capt. Wayne McKenzie was supervising Conquergood鈥檚 training in this particular session.

鈥淪o today we鈥檙e preparing Austin for his career as a firefighter with live fire drills just so he gets used to all of our equipment and that will prepare him for success in his career,鈥� said McKenzie. 鈥淭his training facility is top notch, there鈥檚 no replacement for a firefighter like Austin to be able to experience the heat, the smoke, the flames, there is just no replacement for that in terms of being prepared for an actual fire, a real event.鈥�

According to deputy chief Dennis Smith, the new recruits are doing well and likely less than a week away from a spot on the regular department roster.

鈥淲e鈥檙e building on that (previous firefighting skills training) and so now what we do is introduce them to some of the rescue tasks that we do, the swift water and ice rescue. Both of them were out on the ice earlier this year. They鈥檒l do auto accident and they鈥檒l be live fire training with our crews just to build everyone鈥檚 trust and confidence in each other doing that hot work.

鈥淲e start off slow and easy and thoughtful and the comfort or confidence level is pretty easily attained because as auxiliaries they鈥檝e already been relying on that relationship to acquire that job that they have now.鈥�

For Izzy Venables, 31, fighting fires is not new, especially after four years as a Penticton Auxiliary and a decade in the forestry wildfire business travelling throughout the province and U.S. on the front lines.

鈥淚 decided to switch because I think that I saw more of a future in structural (firefighting) and I knew that鈥檚 really where my interests lay I wanted get more into the first responders site of things out of the seasonal gig,鈥� said Venables. 鈥淚t also really opens up the doors to things like rope rescue training or swift water training or ice rescue training. Also there鈥檚 the MVA side o f things the medical side of things.鈥�

She is also no stranger to the school of hard knocks, having played women鈥檚 rugby at the premier level however is now transitioning to the less damaging world of (non contact) standup paddle board racing.

No matter what she is doing, Venables enjoys the camaraderie of working with others.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a real team dynamic atmosphere here. I was able to put my experience on a wild (fire) line crew and through my experience playing sports, bring it into this kind of team atmosphere at the fire department,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 huge for me, I kind of think, for myself, being in a team atmosphere gives you an opportunity to strive to be the best person you can be but also motivate your peers at the same time. It鈥檚 a pretty big part of the puzzle.

鈥淧enticton is pretty lucky we have some career staff who are really well versed not only in firefighting but in other areas as well and I鈥檝e kind of been a bit of a sponge and absorbed as much knowledge as they have to give.鈥�

Having volunteered at the Soupateria, SPCA and working with St. John Ambulance Brigade she is looking forward to the department鈥檚 outside participation in community activities.

And as far as the gender issue, Venables is quite at home working in 鈥渁 man鈥檚鈥� world and does not feel any added pressure being the only female firefighter in town.

鈥淚鈥檝e always been the female amongst the men so I鈥檓 pretty used to it, not a big change,鈥� she said. 鈥淔or me, overall when I look at the big picture, being the only female, there are young girls and young men looking towards me, seeing me kind of blazing a path and that gets me a little bit excited.

鈥淔or me personally, I鈥檓 just coming to work every day and learning as much as I can and do the best job that I can do and being able to serve the people of Penticton is just such a big plus and that鈥檚 what I鈥檓 looking forward to doing.鈥�