Addington Stewart served the St. Louis Fire Department for 35 years, retiring in April 2013 as captain and field commander at Lambert International Airport. Stewart is a past chairman of F.I.R.E. in St. Louis. He was also active with the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters (IABPF), serving as director of the South Central Region and as president from 2016 to 2020. Daniel S. Austin (1921-1990) served the St. Louis Fire Department for 30 years until he retired in 1982. He attained the rank of captain, headed the arson investigation division, and worked in the fire marshal office. In 1967, Austin was a founding member of the Firefighters Institute for Racial Equality (F.I.R.E.) in St. Louis. F.I.R.E. is Missouri’s oldest public safety civil rights organization. In 1970, Austin attended the first and founding convention of the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters (IABPF) where he was elected to serve as sergeant-at-arms from 1970 to 1972. In 1967, African American firefighters in St. Louis established the Firefighters Institute for Racial Equality (F.I.R.E.) upon realization that the local firefighter union failed to represent their interests. On 20 November 1968, Ina Boon, on behalf of the St. Louis Branch of the NAACP, filed a complaint against the St. Louis Fire Department with the Missouri Commission on Human Rights, charging discriminatory treatment by reason of race or color in upgrading procedures and hiring practices. In 1974, F.I.R.E. filed suit against the City of St. Louis alleging discrimination against African American personnel. The suit also alleged segregated “supper clubs” and dining arrangements existed in firehouses within the department. The U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that such discrimination did exist and ordered changes, a process that continued for years. F.I.R.E. continues to promote fair hiring practices, unbiased promotions, and access to training and development for all firefighters. Due to the upheaval in St. Louis, in 1972 the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters (IABPF) chose to show solidarity with F.I.R.E. and held its second conference in St. Louis. The IABPF was officially founded in October 1970 at a conference in Hartford, Connecticut. The need for a national organization to address common issues related to racial inequities in their respective fire departments and to promote their interests was identified by the five founding organizations: Club Valiant, Inc. (Philadelphia); Phoenix Society, Inc. (Hartford, CT); Vulcan Pioneers of Hudson County (Jersey City, NJ); Vulcan Pioneers of New Jersey (Newark); and Vulcan Society, Inc. (NYC). In 1992, St. Louis’s F.I.R.E. held Charter Organization status with the IABPF, recognizing its contributions to create the IABPF in October 1970 and its IABPF membership since 1971.