Meet the women of the Chagrin Valley Fire Department

For more than 30 years, Ellita Vedder has served Northeast Ohioans as not only a firefighter, but as a role model. Vedder was the first woman on both the Chagrin Valley Fire Department and the Warrensville Heights Fire Department, rising to the rank of captain in both communities.

While she has been a leader for decades, her rise to the rank of captain, and role as the only woman, hasn’t been easy. Vedder recalled growing up without ever seeing female firefighters, instead, deciding to pursue a degree in nursing. It was encouragement from her friends that pushed her to head to the Chagrin Valley Fire Department in the 1980s to give the career a shot.

“There were a lot of senior guys that probably did not believe that I belonged here,” Vedder said of first joining the department. “There [were] a lot of nerves and a lot of fear, but I also have a family background where I have five brothers, so I was brought up in that tomboyish type scenario. So I was never afraid to try what the boys were trying.”

Vedder gave it her all, despite doubts from her new colleagues. Vedder remembered a former assistant chief who she described as “very old school,” who didn’t believe she could pull her weight. She said he would make her wait back at the station when fellow firefighters were out on calls, or force her to stay on the truck when she would make it out on a call.

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