For John Alley and Luke Barron, being firefighters and varsity wrestling coaches isnât simply a matter of balancing two jobs. Itâs more like a double-dip in intertwined vocations.
Alley is an engineer for the Westminster Fire Department, while Barron is a firefighter for the Denver Fire Department. Theyâve coached at Columbine High School together for six years, the past two as co-head coaches.
The sum of both jobs requires early mornings and late nights, traded shifts at the station and aching muscles from drilling with the Rebels in the wrestling room. But the payoff â building community via fire trucks and takedowns â makes it all worthwhile.
âOn the job, most times we see people at their bad moments â theyâre going through their worst time right now, and thatâs why weâre there,â Barron explained.