{"id":65102,"date":"2025-06-10T01:00:44","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T08:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/civileats.com\/?p=65102"},"modified":"2025-06-10T15:49:31","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T22:49:31","slug":"this-man-is-feeding-californias-incarcerated-firefighters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/civileats.com\/2025\/06\/10\/this-man-is-feeding-californias-incarcerated-firefighters\/","title":{"rendered":"This Man Is Feeding California\u2019s Incarcerated Firefighters"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/div>

In January, as hurricane-force winds caused wildfires to raze entire neighborhoods in Los Angeles County, more than 7,500 firefighters<\/a> risked their lives to save people, pets, homes, and communities. Among them were an estimated 1,100 inmates<\/a> from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. This month, as California\u2019s traditional fire season commences with the dry, hot summer, many of those individuals will be back.<\/p><\/div>

\n

Incarcerated individuals have been on the fire lines in the Golden State since 1915<\/a>, but their numbers have increased in recent years as wildfires have intensified. The Anti-Recidivism Coalition<\/a> (ARC), a Los Angeles-based organization working toward criminal justice reform, supports those firefighters with quality food unavailable in prison, serving more than 800 during the recent wildfires.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal was to give them different meals based on what they would ask for but also give them the opportunity to experience different kinds of cooking.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

ARC\u2019s executive director, Sam Lewis, himself formerly incarcerated, worked as a butcher in the prison kitchen while serving a 24-year sentence. Now, he and formerly incarcerated prison chefs active in ARC are advocating for incarcerated firefighters\u2014also known as hand crews\u2014and sharing with them a wide range of foods at the fire camps.<\/p>\n

Thanks to donations from the public<\/a>, local restaurants, and food companies, the firefighters battling the L.A. fires were provided pulled pork sandwiches, brisket sandwiches, cheeseburgers, and vegetables. This is a noted departure from the substandard meals<\/a> people in prison typically receive, meals that often lead to chronic health problems.<\/p>\n

ARC will be supporting incarcerated firefighters again this fire season, throughout the state, and Lewis will be there alongside, cooking and putting donations to good use. ARC would also like to see incarcerated firefighters receive significantly higher wages, supporting pending legislation<\/a> that would allow them to earn a starting hourly pay of $7.25 during active fires and built-in annual wage increases.<\/p>\n

These firefighters work long hours, comparable to conventional firefighters, and are vulnerable to suffering serious injuries<\/a>. Yet most earn meager wages, starting as low as $5.80 per day<\/a>. The least skilled of the incarcerated firefighters earn about $30 a day for completing 24-hour shifts during active emergencies, a sum critics say is far too little for the risks they take.<\/p>\n

\"Sam<\/a>

Sam Lewis, ARC’s executive director. (Photo courtesy of ARC)<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

Lewis spoke to Civil Eats about why his organization makes food a priority for these firefighters, and how improving their pay could transform their lives.<\/p>\n

Why was it important to ensure that the hand crews had a wide range of foods during the fires earlier this year?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The public wanted to know how they could say thank you to these incarcerated individuals that were putting their lives on the line to save people’s property. So we came up with the idea, with the permission of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, that we could provide them with different meals across the board. The goal was to give them different meals based on what they would ask for but also give them the opportunity to experience different kinds of cooking.<\/p>\n

One chef who prepared meals for the firefighters, Jeff Henderson, has an interesting backstory, one that gives him a personal connection to them. Can you say more about him?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, Chef Jeff was the only formerly incarcerated chef that I knew of who came and cooked. He purchases the food, cooks it, and then after the meal is cooked, we reimburse him for the cost. He cooked what he calls \u201ccorrectional chicken<\/a>\u201d [the fried chicken he learned to make in prison with all-purpose flour and seasonings] and hot link sandwiches with cheese, and then they had a dessert. The dessert was sent by the cookie company Crumbl.<\/p>\n

Chef Jeff is self-taught. Cooking was his dream. He came home a long time ago and started his program [Chef Jeff Project<\/a>]. He’s written a number of books<\/a>. His food is incredible. He trains a lot of the kids who work in some of the hotels in Las Vegas, where he\u2019s based. So, if you go to those hotels and you have amazing food there, a lot of times that’s the touch of Chef Jeff.<\/p>\n

Although you\u2019re not a chef, food service was one of your responsibilities when you were incarcerated. What was it like to be a butcher in prison?<\/strong><\/p>\n

When I was at Soledad [State Prison], I was the lead butcher for about two years. We prepped meals for about 6,000 people, so anything that had to do with meats, any dairy products, like cheese, was our responsibility. We prepped everything\u2014roast beef, spaghetti and meatballs, hamburgers, chicken. It was our job to make sure that it was prepped, properly stored, and then sent out to the main line for people to eat.<\/p>\n

Do you feel like food has improved in prisons or do you think there’s still a long way to go?<\/strong><\/p>\n

So, here’s the thing: It depends on the cook. We had a guy over the entire kitchen who was incredible. This guy would go out and sample food and bring it back. He was from Louisiana, so he was serious about what he would purchase. Each institution gets a budget, so his job was to find the food and spend his budget wisely. He really worked hard to make sure that we had great fresh fruit, and he wouldn’t get the processed turkey because his attitude was like, \u201cIf I’m not going to eat it, I’m not going to serve it to the people I’m feeding.\u201d He would also make sure you had enough vegetables on your tray.<\/p>\n

There has been some serious effort by the Department of Corrections to move to a healthier diet, because on the back end of having people incarcerated, the cost goes up as their health goes down. But if you feed people properly, their health can be maintained at a higher level, which causes the cost on the back end of incarceration to go down.<\/p>\n

ARC supported incarcerated firefighters in January by making sure they had access to foods they wouldn\u2019t normally eat and that they were properly hydrated while risking their lives. And you were inundated with donations of sports drinks for the firefighters?<\/strong><\/p>\n

There were just pallet loads of those coming in. We even had some of our ARC members transport some of those drinks to different base camps. There was so much that sometimes, it was like, \u201cCould you stop donating?\u201d [Laughter] It was a beautiful thing because it just shows the unity of Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe should always believe in the human spirit and resiliency and understand that our job as a society is to help people become the best version of themselves, even when they\u2019ve made bad choices and possibly have hurt people.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Beyond food, ARC is seeking donations to help improve the lives of incarcerated firefighters overall once they leave prison. Can you describe the needs these funds will meet?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The donations are for scholarships for [incarcerated] firefighters coming home who want to continue to be firefighters. When a person comes home from incarceration and they go into a training center and become a certified firefighter, then they’re deployed. They can be deployed anywhere in the state, and they have to cover the cost of living, of moving. They have to get an apartment, first and last month\u2019s rent, so that’s one thing that the scholarships will cover.<\/p>\n

ARC is also advocating for recently introduced legislation to give incarcerated firefighters higher wages. If this bill passes, how might it change their lives?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The legislation, Assembly Bill 247<\/a>, was introduced by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan. The money would go on the [prisoners\u2019] books, so they could do what they would like to with it. In some instances, [prisoners] may have restitution to pay, so the state would take 55 percent of that. If they don’t have restitution, or if the restitution has been paid, then they can use it for the commissary. They could just save the money until they’re released also. Walking out of prison, normally, you have $200 in gate money. Ask yourself, how far does that take you, especially in today’s economy?<\/p>\n

What is your response to members of the public who are concerned that incarcerated firefighters are being exploited?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The firefighter program is a voluntary program. You have to apply to go to the fire camps, and there’s a whole process that you have to go through, including medical clearance, in order to be accepted. The CDCR health care staff have to clear you\u2014physically and mentally. Because if you think about it, it’s hard work.<\/p>\n

Incarcerated firefighters also have to be what you call minimum custody status, which is the lowest classification of security. They have to have eight years or less on their sentence. Disqualifying things that can stop them from going to fire camp are convictions like sex offenses, arson, or [prison] escapes. Other things that are disqualifying are active warrants, medical issues, or high-notoriety cases.<\/p>\n

If a person goes to a fire camp, it’s voluntary. If they get there and don’t want to continue, they don’t have to. They can go back without being written up. One of my young people that I mentored decided it wasn’t something that he wanted to do, and so he returned to the facility.<\/p>\n

How long have you all been supporting incarcerated firefighters?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We helped establish the Ventura Training Center (VTC) in 2018. That’s the program where people come out of incarceration, go through the training, and become certified firefighters. With the passage of additional legislation after the implementation of VTC, people who are coming home now [after having trained to fight fires] can also get their record expunged<\/a> so they can get their EMT license, which allows them to become municipal firefighters if they can find a job. We have three or four [ARC alums] who are working [as EMTs] in Orange County, and the rest work for CAL FIRE<\/a> [wilderness fire protection].<\/p>\n

Are you hopeful that public perception of the incarcerated community will change in the wake of the wildfires?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I would hope that this tragic event and the attention that’s being given to our incarcerated hand crews that support firefighters help the entire public understand that people change, that redemption is possible. We should always believe in the human spirit and resiliency and understand that our job as a society is to help people become the best version of themselves, even when they’ve made bad choices and possibly have hurt people. That does not necessarily make them bad people. That makes them people that have done bad things that can be corrected.<\/p>\n

This interview was lightly edited for length and clarity. <\/em><\/p>\n

<\/div><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Incarcerated individuals have been on the fire lines in the Golden State since 1915, but their numbers have increased in recent years as wildfires have intensified. 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