This week is a special #membermonday as you meet L4107 President and Captain Miles Sweeney. Miles has been with the Vista Fire Department since 2003. He and his wife, Yoli, have been married for 23 years and they have two kids together, Melayna (16) and Michael (14), as well as their pup Finnegan Magee.
Miles firefighting experience has accumulated over 26 years. He started as a Damage Control shipboard firefighter and Hot Suit Man while serving in the US Navy. In 1997 he switched to a private job in the Marshall Islands, and became a Search and Rescue Swimmer. He then made his way back to San Diego where he eventually settled with us at Vista Fire Department. Since then he has held positions as Firefighter/Paramedic, Engineer, and now Captain. He served on the San Diego Urban Search & Rescue (USAR) Task Force 8 for over a decade.
Miles has been VFD Firefighter of the Year, also in 2016 he was named Heroes of Vista Firefighter of the Year. He also received the American Legion Medal of Valor and has a day bestowed upon him within the City of Vista. Miles has been recognized by Firefighter Aid for his support in the 9/11 Memorial Star Climb. However, his most prized possession is his leather helmet presented to him by Vista Fire brother, Andy Valenta, for his work within L4107.
Miles had this to say about his work “I have been a servant my entire life in one way or another, and I am ever grateful for my chosen profession. A profession that gives me the opportunity to be there on someone’s hardest day, to be there when they reach out for help. It’s tangible and it’s a blessing. Some days are harder than others, but when you have your Union family with you to hold you up, there’s no other job like it. Similarly, being able to make the lives of my Union Brothers and Sisters and their families better, through the work of the 4107 has been my life’s honor and privilege up to this point. This is my sixteenth (16th) year on the Vista Fire Fighters Association Executive Board and being able to reflect on what we have organized and built, on the members and families we’ve been able to support, it fills me with a sense of pride. Serving those who protect our City, is probably what means the most to me, and I get to do that as a Fire Officer on shift and as President of the Local. I am a proud Vista Firefighter”.
