ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — Born and raised in Fort Pierce, Michael Jenkins has always made an impact in his hometown.
"I used to eat breakfast with the chief. This is 30 years ago, and all the firemen every morning," said Jenkins.
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He was talked into working for the St. Lucie County Fire District.
"I fell in love with that job. I couldn't wait to go to work. My mom couldn't wait for me to tell them stories," said Jenkins.
For 32 years now, the retired captain has held several titles and shared several stories. While he admits he wouldn't trade his first responder title for anything, he needed breaks.
"Some firefighters and I used to go out west and ski in Utah every year," said Jenkins.
After retiring, he put his skis down. However, a coworker talked him into hitting the slopes again.
"Michael and I have been skiing together since our children were small," said fellow retired firefighter Saundra Maher. The two began training in their spare time.
Yes, there's no snow in Florida, so they got creative.
"You can do this as fast as you want it or as slow as you want it," said Jenkins, who built an in-home gym that helps him work out his full body.
It worked in this year's National Firefighter Downhill Ski Races in Switzerland.
"You get to go pre-race and decide if you want to go out there and kill yourself or not," said Jenkins.
He's laughing, but the duo were up for the challenge—so much so that Jenkins won a gold medal while Maher won herself a bronze.
"It was rewarding, yes, to know that I can still do it," said Jenkins. "Hopefully, I'll still be alive and can do it next year."
"Winning gold and silver is just a fun cherry on top of the cupcake," said Maher.
