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Our Mission

The US HOTSHOTS ASSOCIATION strives to honor all Hotshots and Hotshot Crews, past and present, with a Preserving the Past, Paying it Forward ethos. We are founded around three pillars of priority: to provide support to Hotshots and Hotshot Families in need; to celebrate, preserve, promote and protect Hotshot culture, history, and lore; and to lend leadership and expertise to innovative projects that seek to improve and expand the application and abilities of Hotshots and Hotshot Crews in the areas of leadership, tactics, techniques, equipment, and otherwise.

Who We Are

The newly-formed U.S. HOTSHOTS ASSOCIATION is an organization created with a specific mission: to support, promote, and preserve Hotshot Crews and Hotshot Crewmembers, both current and former. Dedicated to preserving the rich history of the US Hotshot program, committed to mentorship, and intended to support both special and dire needs, the USHA has also formed with an intent to directly influence innovation and advancement across the pillars of Wildland Fire: Safety, Suppression, and Management.

Originally conceptualized by a group of former Superintendents with deep roots in making the nationwide Hotshot program what it is today, the U.S. HOTSHOTS ASSOCIATION is open for membership: current and former Hotshots, Fire Managers (both former Hotshots and otherwise), Friends and Family, Media, inquisitive laypersons — in short, any individual interested in learning, promoting, and supporting Hotshots through the stated Mission of the USHA and its elected Board Members.

2016 Reunion

Here is how the U.S. Hotshots Association will impact the Hotshot community:

Respond to Special and Dire Needs
The USHA Mission includes a commitment to direct response and support of Hotshots and/or Hotshot family members in times of need: matters of medical health, injury, or death of a current or former Hotshot. This component of the Mission will also be realized through allocations to charitable or civic organizations that align with the USHA’s Mission and Vision.
 
Collect and Preserve Hotshot History
The Hotshot program is approaching 70 years since inception, and Hotshot history, already rich and complex, continues to grow. Today’s event is tomorrow’s learning opportunity; the slides from the next fire help decision making on the fire a decade from now. The USHA, as one of its three pillars, has undertaken a commitment to preserving, collecting, clarifying, and sharing Hotshot history—the experiences, learning moments, and agency policies and politics that have made the program what it is today, all of which continue to evolve and will inform the Hotshot program of future decades.
Innovate and Advance the Hotshot Skill Set
 Promoting discussion and information exchange, offering mentorship to interested IHCs and their Overhead, and providing a pool of Subject Matter Experts available for reviews or investigations (accident and otherwise) make up the primary components of our commitment to Innovation and advancement of the Hotshot Skill set. We seek to achieve these goals by providing mentorship through accessibility and organization; by speaking on current and past Safety and suppression issues and the influence of agency regulations and policies; and by providing leadership through conducting reunions which will include engaging presentations, panels, training, and information sessions. Additionally, the USHA will communicate and collaborate with other relevant organizations.

USHA Endorsed Fundraisers

Another avenue for USHA support comes through our endorsement of qualifying private fundraising and crowdfunding accounts such as GoFundMe and YouCaring. With the widespread use of social media we can now reach out to an ever-increasing number of people worldwide, and make these situations known to the greater Hotshot community. Campaigns meeting our support criteria can request to have a link to their fundraising initiative posted on our USHA web page, which will include a notification sent out to those on our mailing list. Contributions to any given USHA-endorsed fundraising campaign are completely at the discretion of any individual on our mailing list and wider network. For fundraising campaigns spearheaded for individuals (created by others), the U.S. Hotshot Association collects no percentage of the monies raised, and there is no fee USHA fee for this opportunity to spread the commo to our fellow Hotshots who may be able and energized to support others. Check back here, or monitor our New and Events page, for currently endorsed campaigns.
Visit our endorsed fundraiser page. 

If you are interested in applying for the U.S. Hotshots Association endorsement of your campaign, please click here.

Join the U.S. Hotshots Association Today!

BECOME A MEMBER

Help preserve our past and pay it forward by becoming a member today.