L.A. City Fire Department

LAFD Assistant Fire Chief Retires After 38 Years of Service

Assistant Fire Chief Kwame Cooper (Courtesy Photo) When Assistant Fire Chief Kwame Cooper joined the Los Angeles City Fire Department 38 years ago, there were less than 80 Blacks out of 3,800 firefighters. Nearly four decades later, and Cooper has played a vital role in creating a more diverse and inclusive population of firefighters in L.A. Cooper is retiring from the department this year, but for the veteran firefighter, the word ‘retirement’ doesn’t mean that his journey is complete. “My philosophy is that this is more of a transformation in my life where although I won’t be committed to going