East Valley: For Landon Darden, a desire to help has him eyeing a future in firefighting

Landon Darden said he had a tough start to his high school career.

The cohort class structures employed at East Valley High School during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic were not particularly engaging to Darden, who skipped class as a result. But eventually Darden understood he’d have to get his grades up if he wanted to graduate.

“I started off on the wrong foot,” said Darden, 19, “but now, over the last three years, I’ve been pushing.”

That push has seen Darden come into his identity as a community-minded individual, according to EVHS faculty. Darden said he’s since spoken with freshmen to impart the importance of attending class.

Along the way, Darden fostered a potential future in firefighting, with hopes of someday becoming a smokejumper.

Darden has spent the past two years taking firefighter courses at Spokane Valley Tech. Last summer, he was brought onto an engine crew with Alder Creek Firefighting, responding to wildfires in Okanogan County and Medical Lake, he said. Darden plans to rejoin the company this summer with hopes of enrolling in a fire academy in the near future.

“I’ve always wanted to help people. It’s just something I’ve always been passionate about,” Darden said. “We need more people like that in the world to make it good.”

Darden said one of his main takeaways from high school was a lesson he struggled with up until his senior year: “Be the person you want to be, not what others want you to be.”

Another takeaway was that the school’s staff and faculty are not “the bad guys” that some students believe them to be, he said. Rather, they are there to help.

Dave Rovick, college and career coordinator at EVHS, said Darden has never been nervous about engaging in conversations with faculty and other adults. Likewise, Rovick said Darden has been more career-minded than the average student and is always willing to help out.

“School hasn’t always been easy for him. I think being in the fire science program has kept him more focused,” Rovick said. “I think he’s willing to persevere. Even though he hasn’t, there were definitely moments where he could’ve given up for a lot of different reasons. I think he understands what it takes to get where he wants to go.”

Mariah Nepean, a counselor at EVHS, said she has watched Darden grow over the past four years into an individual who wants to help others feel included and supported.

“I think he just decided at one point who he wanted to be,” Nepean said. “One of the ways Landon copes with a variety of challenges is service to others. His teacher is the one who said this, but I would agree: She said he’s the first to volunteer his time and talent to help.”