Thursday, November 2, 2017

Trailblazers in Black History: Tonya Boyd, FDNY


Veteran Will Become Department's First Black Female Deputy Chief


By Ginger Adams Otis

An EMS captain with 21 years on the job will become the first African-American woman in the FDNY to achieve the rank of deputy chief on Thursday.

Capt. Tonya Boyd, who joined the FDNY’s Emergency Medical Services while in college as a way to make money, said she never dreamed her career would reach such heights.

“I’m so excited and I am so blessed,” the EMS officer told the Daily News.

“After hearing about the promotion, I couldn’t believe it. I feel like I’ve knocked down a door and opened it for a lot of EMTs just starting on this job,” said Boyd.

“African-American women will see someone who looks like them as a deputy chief and they will know more is possible — their careers won’t top out at paramedic or even lieutenant,” said the captain of Station 39 in Brooklyn.

Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said Boyd’s success was due to her efforts.

Click here for the full article.

Source: The New York Daily News 

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