Lodi Firefighter Trevor Lambert, right, gives pointers to new fire recruit Cameron Heberle on Friday morning as they train by making ventilation holes on a house to be demolished in the Reynolds Ranch development. (Jennifer M. Howell/News-Sentinel)

Five new Lodi firefighters start work today

After completing four months of training, five new Lodi firefighters start working regular 24-hour shifts today.

The five men, all in their 20s, have been training at the Stockton Fire Department's academy, which includes work in Lodi. Last week they trained in Lodi to get a feel for the department's way of doing things, and they finished the training Friday.

Now the firefighters will work various shifts at the city's four fire stations, and they will be on probation for eight months. They fill positions left by firefighters who retired or went to work for other departments.

The new firefighters are:

David Cantu

David Cantu, 26, of Merced. He grew up in Gilroy, where he graduated from Gilroy High School and then joined the U.S. Army.

During his six years in the Army, Cantu went twice to the Middle East — four months in Iraq and seven months in Afghanistan. When he returned to the states, he began volunteering as a firefighter and found that the job had some of the same aspects he'd enjoyed in the military.

Cantu said he came to work in Lodi because it had the same close-knit community feeling he'd known in Gilroy. He currently commutes from Merced, where he lives with his wife, Stacey, and their 18-month-old son, Aiden.

Peter Doppe

Peter Doppe, 24, of Lodi. He grew up in Concord, graduated from Concord High School and then studied fire science at Butte Community College.

He got a job as a firefighter in Minden, Nev., where he worked for two years, but said he wanted to move back to California to be closer to his family.

After two years as a firefighter, Doppe has no intentions of changing careers. He said he likes the challenge of facing new things every day, and never knowing what a day will bring.

Cameron Heberle

Cameron Heberle, 22, of Lodi. The son of Lodi Fire Battalion Chief Ron Heberle, he graduated from Tokay High School and then attended San Joaquin Delta College.

Heberle became a Woodbridge Fire volunteer, then joined the U.S. Navy. He received a medical discharge after a year-and-a-half, and came home with the hopes of becoming a Lodi firefighter.

Growing up with his dad working at Lodi's fire stations made Heberle want to become part of the department, he said.

David Locke

David Locke, 23, of Lodi. He grew up in Clovis, where he graduated from Buchanan High School. He then received an associate's degree in fire science from Fresno City College.

Locke, who had wanted to be a firefighter since he was a teenager, moved to Lodi for the job. Like other new firefighters, he said the city appealed to him because it reminded him of the town where he grew up.

His fiancee, Cynthia, also lives in Lodi and is attending Sacramento State University.

Jon Pittman

Jon Pittman, 23, of Tracy. He grew up in Pleasanton and graduated from Foothill High School.

Pittman attended California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, where he received a bachelor's degree in forestry with a concentration in wildland fires.

Lodi appealed to him, he said, because it's a town similar to the place where he grew up.

Contact reporter Layla Bohm at layla@lodinews.com.