Tayler Alexander was in middle school on 9/11, watching with her classmates as the terrorist attacks unfolded.
She knew then a career of helping others was the path for her.
“I decided, ‘alright, I’m either going to be doing law enforcement, be a firefighter or get into the military,’” Alexander said.
When she made it to high school, Alexander did an internship with the Lenoir Fire Department, and ended up working there part-time as a high school senior.
“While everybody was going to senior week, the chief was like, ‘you can either go to Myrtle Beach or I can give you a full-time job,’” Alexander said. “So I was like, ‘oh, I’ll take a full-time job.’”
She started working there full time in 2008, making history as the first woman to ever work for the city’s fire department.