Chief Ivan Mote
Rescue Division

Chief Ivan T. Mote was appointed to lead the Rescue Division by Mayor Alvin Brown on Dec. 21, 2011. He comes to the position after serving as Chief of JFRD's Training Division.

Back in the late 1980s, when Mote was 22 years old, he received a recruitment letter from JFRD. He wasn't interested, so he tossed it in the garbage because he was pursuing a career as an electronics technician. Fortunately for Mote, JFRD would soon send another letter, and this time, he responded, launching what has become a 24-year career with the department. And speaking of letters, when Mote was seeking the post as Chief of JFRD's Training Division in 2010, he closed his cover letter with this phrase: 'Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way!'

Mote's hearty philosophy is a product of his service in the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy Reserve, the U.S. Army Reserve, working with his first fire officer (JFRD retiree Capt. Jackie Strayer), and working for JFRD, a paramilitary organization. Mote reached the rank of Captain in the Army Reserve, working as a combat medic instructor and teaching fellow paramedics life-saving and combat skills before they are deployed.

His JFRD career has been a mixture of responding to emergencies in the field and serving as part of the department's administration. Mote's rookie assignment with JFRD in 1988 was riding on TeleSquad 22 on Jacksonville's Westside. After four years, he transferred to Rescue 10 as an Engineer and then to Rescue 34, where he was promoted to Lieutenant and then Captain. Mote knows the rigors of riding a rescue unit, as it's common to respond to a dozen or more calls each shift. After several years in the field, Mote was appointed in 2003 as the department's compliance officer and returned again in 2007 as the recruitment/compliance officer. He also assumed the duties of equal employment representative until his appointment as Training Division Chief in December 2010.

Mote earned his master's degree in Nursing from Walden University and his bachelor's degree in Nursing from Jacksonville University. He is a registered nurse and also holds an associate's degree in emergency medical services management from Florida Community College at Jacksonville. He has continued his relationship with the college, now Florida State College at Jacksonville, through his role as founder and administrator of a minority scholarship program for students of the emergency medical technician course and firefighter certification, a state requirement to work as a firefighter.