SAN DIEGO — Shavawn Johnson is not only a talented singer, mother of three, and a wife; she’s been a firefighter for 15 years and a fire captain at Cal Fire for the last three years.
Johnson first became a firefighter at 18 years old.
"I'm always ambitious. I always want to challenge myself," she says.
She knew firefighting was in her blood when firefighters would come to her house a lot as a child when her grandfather suffered numerous falls from his battle with cancer.
"I realized I could do all the stuff guys could do. I get to work out. I get the adrenaline and that's what inspired me to do it," said Johnson.
Johnson started as a seasonal firefighter in Riverside in 2000 before going to paramedic school. She worked at several other fire departments which eventually lead her to Ramona.
At times in her career, she was the only woman in the division.
"I don’t ever think about being a female. I forget until someone is like, "Girl power! Good job!'" said Johnson. "This job is dynamic. We work days on end without food or water and are just trying to help others."
When she’s not fighting flames, she says one of the most difficult yet rewarding jobs is being a mother to a young daughter and twins. In fact, her family has 9 sets of twins!
She stays fit and active through Crossfit and that’s not all. She can carry a tune. She once sang the national anthem at a Padres game.
As a woman that can do it all, Johnson has some words of wisdom for other women who want to follow in her footsteps.
"You can. Never give up. Just like any career, it takes a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. Once you get to that level, there’s nothing like it. It's so rewarding. If you have that dream, don’t give up until you obtain it," said Johnson.