POCATELLO — Inspired by a familial firefighting legacy that began with their great-grandfather, three local siblings have joined the ranks of the Pocatello Fire Department with the mission of responding to emergencies and saving lives.

“It all started with our great-grandfather John Farnsworth, who was a firefighter here for Pocatello,” said Kamron Farnsworth, the eldest brother of the trio. “He retired here and then my dad (Steve Farnsworth) became a firefighter and was hired in Idaho Falls. (When I was) listening to the stories, to some of the things (my dad) said and the things he did, it sounded fascinating.”

During their youth, the boys’ father definitely provided the inspiration for them to embark on careers as firefighters.

“He always taught us to be kind and to be caring,” Kamron said. “You don’t know what else someone’s going through any certain day. Treat people with respect. You have to work for what you want. It’s not just going to be handed to you. All three of us, we played sports, so we knew what it was like to work and be accountable and hold each other accountable for things.”

When they were young, the brothers would often visit their father at the fire station, where they got an up close look at the fire trucks and ambulances. The visits were interesting and inspiring and led to Kamron’s decision later in life to go to emergency medical technician school and begin the process to become a member of the Pocatello Fire Department.

While many might envision a trio of brothers working for the same fire department as being an arrangement prone to sibling rivalry and heated moments, the Farnsworths pride themselves on being professional emergency responders.

“We’re brothers, we fight and we make fun of each other, but when it comes down to business time and we’re on calls, we pull it together,” Kamron said. “We’re professional. We know how to treat people. We joke around but working together is nothing (to worry about). We understand each other. We know what needs to be done and what we can talk about. It doesn’t take a lot for me to say, ‘Hey, Kolman, can you do this and not have any gripe about it?’ He’ll do it for me without any question.”

The middle brother, Kolman Farnsworth, was also inspired by their father to become a firefighter but appreciated different aspects of their time together growing up. The firefighter schedule permits a certain level of freedom that allowed their father to be a big part of their lives, often telling them stories about his life as a firefighter or simply spending quality time with them.

Kolman remembers how his father would often talk about life at the fire station and the strong camaraderie between him and his fellow firefighters.

Kolman liked the firefighter schedule of a short week made up of long shifts as well as the great working environment of life at the fire station. He soon decided to pursue a career in firefighting as well.

“I liked how my dad would say that you create such a good bond with your coworkers,” Kolman said. “I’ve really experienced that here. There are a lot of guys here that do a bunch of (interacting) outside of work. Just spending so much time here at the station, I feel like that translates over to having good relationships outside of the station. Building lifelong friends is another great benefit of working here.”

Kolman hit the books right out of high school, taking EMT classes at Idaho State University when he was only 18 years old.

Earning a full-time firefighter position with a fire department is very competitive and can take a while, but Kolman’s dedication paid off and he was hired at the age of 20.

Kolman is now 24 and is working with Kamron at Pocatello Fire Station 3, where they are crew members on the same ambulance.

“I definitely think it makes responding to calls easier,” Kolman said about working with his brothers. “You kind of know what to expect from them. You know what they know and what they expect from you. I think we all mesh pretty well together and are pretty easy going. It definitely makes the job easier and a lot better.”

The youngest brother, Karson Farnsworth, would often be told as a child that he would grow up to be a firefighter. While he was resistant at first, Karson soon embraced. the career path. It wasn’t long before Karson took the opportunity to get his EMT certification in high school and he was hired at the Pocatello Fire Department a year after graduating.

“I feel like I have some big shoes to fill,” Karson said. “I’ve always been told that (my brothers are) great firemen, so I want to be just like them (and) to be able to be even better than them one day. I feel like we have a great connection, especially on calls. I already know what they want because outside of work we do stuff as a family. We’re able to communicate about calls to each other, what they like on calls, what I like on calls, certain stuff like that.”

The Farnsworths hope that their family’s firefighting legacy continues.

Both Kamron and Kolman have children and while there isn’t any pressure for them to embark on any particular career path, it seems like the family’s firefighting tradition has a good chance of continuing.

For now Kamron, Kolman and Karson are thankful to be working together as members of the Pocatello Fire Department, knowing that it’s a rare thing for three brothers to be battling blazes together.

“Where we know each other, we’ve grown up our whole lives together, there’s a relationship that we’re grateful for, that we probably don’t quite understand,” Kamron said. “It’s a pretty good rapport and we’re pretty good friends. We’re pretty close now, a lot closer than we were when we were children. It’s been good and I have no complaints about it. They’re good dudes. They’re fun to hang out with and fun to work with.”