A fire captain who dedicated his life to helping others is in need of help himself. It’s one battle Olympia Fire Department Capt. Jim Brown never thought he’d have to fight, and a tragic consequence of the job he’s loved for so long.
For more than two decades, Brown has been fighting to save lives. Though he knew risks were attached to every call, he had no idea his biggest battle was yet to come.
“When I got started in this business, I never thought cancer was going to be something that would affect me,” said Brown. A trained athlete who enjoys cycling, snorkeling and snowboarding with his family, Brown never smoked a day in his life, but in May 2015, he was diagnosed with stage-four lung cancer. If left untreated, doctors gave him three months to live.