Jan Rader Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

City of Huntington Receives Donation Of Life-Saving Naloxone

The West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute donated 1,000 units of 8mg naloxone to the Huntington Police Department and to the Cabell-Huntington Coalition for the Homeless, otherwise known as the Harmony House.

The City of Huntington is getting some help in stopping opioid overdose deaths.

The West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute donated 1,000 units of 8mg naloxone from Hikma Pharmaceuticals to the Huntington Police Department and to the Cabell-Huntington Coalition for the Homeless, otherwise known as the Harmony House.

The donated overdose reversal medication, naloxone, comes in the form of nasal spray kits.

“We know in particular, Cabell County and Kanawha County are hit the hardest at the moment, and so this is where we’re focusing a lot of our energy and outreach,” President of the The West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute Susan Bissett said.

President of the West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute Susan Bissett, Huntington Police Chief Karl Colder, Doctor Sydnee McElroy, Harmony House Executive Director Amanda Coleman, and Director of the Mayor’s Office of Drug Control Policy and Public Health Jan Rader

Huntington Police Chief Karl Colder said that the large amounts of fentanyl police see and the harm the drug represents is a stark reminder of the many lives potentially lost without naloxone.

“Recently we had about 300 grams of fentanyl seized, which was equivalent to 155,000 people that could have been harmed,” Colder said. You look at the numbers, you look at the risk, not only for our officers who respond, but they can also save lives as well.”

Among the boxes delivered are emergency kits developed by ONEbox. These kits are designed with a 1 minute video tutorial by Jan Rader in both English and Spanish. Along with a video player inside the kit, the tutorial will also be made available online.

ONEbox CEO Joe Murphy giving a demonstration of naloxone emergency kit, with President of the The West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute Susan Bissett on the right.

“Anybody who comes in, they’re offered naloxone, all the staff here are trained and carry naloxone,” executive director of Harmony House, Amanda Coleman said. “This is huge for us to have something that isn’t injectable naloxone. This is much easier to use, people are less nervous about it.”

Joe Murphy, CEO of ONEbox, said that he hopes naloxone can become a standard part of workplace first-aid kits.

“Think about how many first aid kits we have out there. This is an opportunity for us to make this just available in our workplaces and to take that stigma away,” Murphy said.

The West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute plans on distributing more emergency kits with tutorials when manufacturing is complete in August.

Jan Rader Discusses Her Career And The State Of Public Health In Huntington

After 27 years of service, Huntington’s Fire Chief, Jan Rader, is stepping down and transitioning to another role with the city. After officially becoming Huntington’s Fire Chief in 2017, Rader gained global recognition for her approach toward overcoming the opioid epidemic. She spoke with David Adkins to discuss her career serving the public.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

David Adkins: With redefining the role of a first responder, you once said it needs to change from cavalry to something else. In what ways has that role been redefined during your tenure?

Jan Rader: Any first responder role is going to evolve over time because the world evolves, and we have to keep up with that. We need more education, when it comes to what addiction really is and how it affects people. We need more education on how we can refer people to services, things of that nature, and we also need education on mindfulness and keeping ourselves healthy mentally. Because people working today in the first responder role, they’re seeing overdoses of their friends, people they went to high school with, maybe family members, so it affects them in a very deep way versus not going on overdose calls.

David Adkins: With the introduction of COMPASS, which is a wellness program for first responders, how do you think that has helped?

Jan Rader: It’s been amazing and I actually got to be a part of that on the ground level. I’ve seen a need for years and I think that we’re showing first responders throughout the country in the world that it’s okay to take care of yourself even though you know you’re kind of like a superhero without the cake. But if we’re not safe, physically and mentally, then how can we help others?

David Adkins: There’s been a lot of collaboration interdepartmentally, with the fire department, the Huntington health department, and quick response teams. That’s a group of people with different fields that are collaborating together. What is the importance of that collaboration going forward?

Jan Rader: What we’re doing is working, we are making a difference, and that started with the leadership of Mayor Williams. He has guided us and shown us how great it can be to collaborate and partner with other agencies. We’re all in this together. It’s going to take all of us working together. And we have to be able to guide people to the programs that they need to get help. No one department, no one organization can do it alone. So we must work together, and we have and we involve the faith community in everything, and that’s amazing as well.

David Adkins: And having that community involvement for responding to the opioid crisis, that gives people the support system they need.

Jan Rader: It’s so needed. It’s so needed. We have people come here to see what we’re doing from all over the country, and even from other countries, to see how it’s working, and they all comment on the collaboration and the partnerships that we have formed.

David Adkins: A lot of people, when they think about our city, they think of some sort of infamy.

Jan Rader: But look at us West Virginians now. We’re working together and we’re making headway in a very difficult situation. We’re the city of solutions.

David Adkins: How does it feel to be the city of solutions, kind of more of a beacon of positivity and innovation?

Jan Rader: It feels good. You know, it doesn’t take a lot of energy to do the right thing, and that’s what we’re doing. We’re doing the right thing.

David Adkins: Greg Fuller was announced as the new chief. What are your thoughts?

Jan Rader: Greg and I have been friends for years. In fact, he was my chief for 10 years on the fire department. And I was very sad when he decided to retire. He’s a gentleman who has many connections. He has an incredible amount of knowledge when it comes to leadership and dealing with budgets, and he has many connections in the federal government and the state government. He’s just a great guy. He’s a good fit.

David Adkins: You gave your life to public service. What has that been like?

Jan Rader: I feel good about it. I think that I was raised by two very caring parents who taught me that you help those who can’t help themselves. Even if you are not rich yourself, you help others. And that’s how we grew up, and I think we’re all here to help each other, lift each other up. And you know, I think we make a difference when we do that. So I feel good about it. It’s surreal coming to the end of a 27 and a half-year career. It’s a very odd feeling, but it’s time and I love the Huntington Fire Department. I will continue to be their biggest cheerleader, they do amazing things day in day out, sometimes with very little sleep or not the right equipment, but they are my second home. And I’m very grateful for the 27 and a half years I’ve had and I know that they will continue to be superstars in the first responder world.

David Adkins: What are your thoughts on the future of public health in Huntington?

Jan Rader: I think that as long as we keep an open mind, and we collaborate, that we’ll be okay. I think time will tell what we’re going to see in the future.

Note: Jan Rader stepped down as Huntington’s Fire Chief on Friday, February 11, to assume a new role as director of Huntington’s Council on Public Health and Drug Control Policy. Fire Chief Greg Fuller assumed the position Monday, February 14.

Huntington, W.Va. Fire Chief To Take On New Role

A West Virginia fire chief who played a large part in her community’s response to the opioid epidemic is stepping into a new role.

Huntington Fire Chief Jan Rader will become director of the Mayor’s Council on Public Health and Drug Control Policy next month, Mayor Steve Williams said Friday.

“We owe Chief Rader a debt of thanks for her leadership, her heart and her fortitude,” Williams said. “Fortunately, we are not saying goodbye to her. While she may be saying farewell to the fire service, she will continue to assist our efforts in the battle against substance use disorder and the ongoing public health challenges facing our city, state and nation. We aren’t done yet.”

Rader has served as a Huntington firefighter for more than 27 years and became the state’s first professional fire chief in 2017.

Last year Rader testified in a landmark trial filed by the city of Huntington and Cabell County against three large drug distributors about the growing number of overdoses first responders handled over the past decade. She recounted how pill bottles were at the scenes of so many calls.

Rader’s emergency response to drug overdoses was featured in the 2017 film “Heroin(e),” which also included a Cabell County judge and a ministry leader. It was released by Netflix and nominated for the Academy Award for best documentary short subject.

West Virginia's First Female Fire Chief Wins National Award

The chief of the Huntington, West Virginia, Fire Department has been named as the American Legion’s national firefighter of the year.

Chief Jan K. Rader received the award at the American Legion’s 101st National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Wednesday night.

Rader is the state’s first female fire chief after having been a firefighter for nearly 25 years.

The American Legion says it gives the annual award to a firefighter who exceeds the requirements of their position and shows a pattern of community service. The group noted Rader’s work on opioid addiction in Huntington as reason why she won.

Rader says she’s humbled by the award.

Female Fire Chief Blazing New Path in Huntington

Huntington has hired the first full time female fire chief in the state of West Virginia.

Jan Rader is the first woman in the state to lead a professional fire department. The one-time gemologist, who worked at a jewelry store in Washington, D.C. didn’t see this day coming.

Rader said one day while working in the Jewelry store, a woman had a heart attack and she couldn’t help. She said thankfully two women in the store were there and helped the woman. From there, Rader said her feelings on life changed and she wanted to help people.

“Like a light bulb went off in my head, first off I never want to feel helpless again,” Rader said.

This experience also showed Rader that women could be firemen too. After the woman had a heart attack the Fairfax County fire and rescue were called, and some of the workers were women. From there things changed.

“Within a couple of weeks I had taken a CPR class so I would know what to do and then I filled out an application to be a volunteer in Fairfax County to see if it would be something I’d like,” Rader said.

Which led her to take a test with the Huntington Fire Department closer to her hometown of Ironton, Ohio, just across the river from Huntington. And 22 years after working her way up the ladder, Rader is now the first paid female fire chief in West Virginia.

In the state there are 438 fire departments according to the West Virginia State Fire Marshal. Only 12 of those departments have full time chiefs, Huntington being one of them. Of the others, there are 12 female chiefs running volunteer departments.

“I’m stubborn enough that I’m certainly not going to allow anyone else to dictate what I will or will not do as far as career choice,” Rader said. “I didn’t sign up for the career to please anybody else, I did it because it’s really what I wanted to do.”

Rader said at one point there was one other woman who worked for the fire department, but since the late 90’s she’s been the only one.

Rader was named interim chief in December when former Chief Carl Eastham retired. She was immediately thrusted into a budget crisis that involved the Fire Department. Huntington Mayor Steve Williams said it’s Rader’s leadership and ability to communicate that’s helped throughout the process. He said she has the qualities you want in a leader.

“Passion, compassion, she’s a teacher. She has an intellectual curiosity that doesn’t come natural to a lot of folks, she knows a little bit about everything and because of that she can just relate to them,” Williams said. “People are just naturally drawn to her.”

Rader also serves on the Office of Drug Control Policy in Huntington. She said she was led to that role by encountering the number of people she saw addicted to drugs during emergency calls with the fire department. One of the people she helped save is Mickey Watson. He overdosed twice; both times Rader saved his life. Watson said he owes his life and recovery to Rader and her commitment to help those dealing with addiction in the Huntington community.

“She’s the reason I’m sitting here,” Watson said. “She saved my life twice in a week because I chose to live a different life, I was strung out. She didn’t give up when I overdosed. By all rights I should be dead as long as I was out, I’ve seen the video and she wasn’t stopping till I was alive.”

Fellow fireman Charlie Shumaker said Rader is good for the department.

“She’s a very very competent leader, she’s a very good fire ground officer, she’s very safety conscious and wants to move this department forward in a very progressive manner and I think that’s a very positive step in the right direction for the city of Huntington fire department,” Shumaker said.

People like Mickey Watson say Rader can accomplish whatever she sets her mind too, and he’s a prime example of that.

“She is the perfect example of what a leader in our community should be,” Watson said.

Watson has been sober since November of 2015.

Rader said she doesn’t worry about the pressure of being the only woman- even though she has met some resistance

“You know what, they expect me to fail, so that’s beautiful,” Rader said. “Because if I fail, so what that’s what they expect, but if I succeed, then they’re never going to forget.”

Rader said she’ll serve in the role of Fire Chief for as long as Mayor Williams will have her.

Rader Becomes First Professional Female WV Fire Chief

Jan Rader has become the first female professional firefighter to attain the rank of fire chief in West Virginia after being sworn in as Huntington fire chief Wednesday.

The Herald-Dispatch reports Rader has served in the Huntington Fire Department for 22 years. She had been interim fire chief since December, upon her predecessor’s resignation.

While Rader becomes the first professional female fire chief, several women throughout the state serve as volunteer fire chiefs.

Rader thanked Huntington resident Mickey Watson for changing her life in her speech at the swearing-in ceremony. Watson says he credits Rader with saving his life when he overdosed and is the “perfect example” of a leader, even attending is ceremony marking one year of sobriety.

Rader’s salary will be $76,615.