MARK vonAPPEN (Captain-Retired), a 27 year veteran of the fire service in California where he was assigned to the suppression division and achieved the rank of captain. During his career he worked on multiple engine companies (including urban and wild land urban interface) the ladder company, and served in the training division. He served a committee member for California State Fire Training and has contributed to the development of Firefighter Survival and Rapid Intervention curriculums. Mark has been published in Fire Engineering Magazine, Fire Service Warrior, and is the creator of the fire service leadership blog FULLY INVOLVED. He has been a featured presenter at FDIC International since 2015 and has travelled the country as a speaker on leadership and team building. He is an instructor for the Santa Clara County Joint Fire Academy, an academy instructor at Las Positas Community College, and a member of the “Nobody Gets Left Behind” training group.