A life of service can take Ryan Blake (LA’09) almost anywhere—from the cold waters of an Indiana lake to the top of a towering wind turbine.
As assistant chief of the Monticello Fire Department, Blake has built a career centered on helping others. Growing up, he watched his mother find fulfillment as a nurse and saw the difference she made in people’s lives. “I always saw the joy Mom had working in healthcare,” he says. “She loved it.”
Blake’s desire to make an impact shaped his path at Purdue. “Because of my stutter, I received speech therapy through middle school and worked with several different therapists,” he says. Drawing on that experience, he majored in speech, language, and hearing sciences to help others who face similar challenges.
After graduating, Blake worked as a speech pathology aide but soon felt pulled in a different direction. Seeking a fresh opportunity, he contacted the chief of the Vincennes Township Fire Department—the cousin of his wife, Emily (LA’09)—to explore a career in fire service.
“He encouraged me to connect with a volunteer fire department,” Blake says. “Fortunately, we had just bought a house in Battle Ground, which is served by one. I attended a meeting, got to know the firefighters, and soon joined the team.”
That decision marked a professional turning point, as Blake became a certified emergency medical technician and discovered that he had a passion for first-response work. In 2014, he joined the Monticello Fire Department, where he enrolled in paramedic school and steadily rose through the ranks, becoming a lieutenant in 2021 and assistant chief in 2024.
“What makes Monticello’s fire department unique is our ambulance service,” Blake says. “We’re highly trained in prehospital care. Here in White County—and part of Carroll County across the river—we’re the sole provider of advanced life support, so when someone makes a 911 call, one of our ambulances is dispatched.”
The department’s dedication to prehospital care extends to the paramedic training program founded by some of Blake’s colleagues. He serves as the program’s director, guiding firefighters through the certification process.
“It can be expensive and time-consuming to send firefighters for paramedic training,” Blake says. “You either have to travel to a region north of Monticello or down to Indianapolis. We’re kind of smack-dab in the middle, so we saw an opportunity to serve the surrounding areas and get people trained as paramedics.”
Blake’s commitment to the region also includes his service on Jasper County’s Tactical Emergency Medical Services (TEMS) team. A support unit, the TEMS team operates alongside a regional Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team serving Jasper, Newton, and White counties.
In this role, Blake essentially serves as a reserve deputy, providing assistance during the execution of high-risk warrants and other tactical operations. “We have six members on the TEMS team trained to provide care in a hot zone,” he says. “So, if there’s an active threat, we can treat an officer, a suspect, or other victims.”
SWAT situations can last as long as a day—particularly during standoffs—but Blake enjoys the unpredictability. “One of the things I love most about my job is the uncertainty,” he says. “I can plan my day, but I never know what call is coming next or what skills I’ll use. Some aspects of the job are routine, but I enjoy the variety, which is ironic because I’m usually someone who prefers structure and order.”
The variety Blake enjoys is shaped by the diverse needs of the community. Each summer, Monticello experiences a population surge as seasonal residents return to their lake homes. This makes water rescue and dive operations a critical part of the department’s work, highlighting how the range of emergencies often requires skills far beyond traditional firefighting.
On one occasion, Blake helped rescue a worker who had suffered a medical emergency atop a wind turbine, a situation requiring a three-person team to climb nearly 350 feet inside the structure. “We hauled up our gear—a cardiac monitor, medications, and IV supplies,” Blake says. “We got to the top, started an IV, took the man’s vitals, and lowered him down in a harness.”
Encounters like this reinforce the importance of adaptability and continual learning in emergency response. As he looks ahead, Blake is expanding his expertise by pursuing a master’s degree in homeland security and emergency management through Purdue Global—preparing for opportunities that may extend beyond emergency response itself.
One such challenge could emerge as the state considers township consolidation and local government reforms. While the city of Monticello currently oversees fire services, the potential transition to a countywide department would require expertise in planning, resource allocation, and personnel management.
“Building multiple stations throughout the county and determining their location would fall on the fire chief’s and my shoulders,” Blake says. “That’s why expanding my knowledge of strategic planning and resource deployment is so important.”
Now, as he prepares for possible changes while balancing work and studies, Blake relies on the support of his wife and his children, Charlie and Maryn.
“Everything requires a good balance between work and home,” Blake says. “I lean on Emily a lot. I might clock out at 3 o’clock, but if I get a call that needs my attention, she keeps things running at home. I count on her to help maintain the balance.” That support, in turn, gives Blake the freedom to focus on the work he finds most rewarding—serving his community and helping shape the department’s future.
—Matt Schnepf
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