Souda Spotlight: C.J. Terlaje, Firefighter

Story and photo by Joel Diller, Public Affairs

C.J. Terlaje, a native of Guam, arrived at NSA Souda Bay in September 2020 with his wife and two children. He served in the Marine Corps, Texas National Guard, and Air Force before becoming a civilian firefighter at U.S. Naval Base Guam in 2013. He traded one island for another to become a member of Team Souda, offering his skills and experience to the Fire & Emergency Services Department, working to keep the installation safe.

What programs are you involved with at the station?

When you arrive on board, the fire chiefs allow you to dive into programs that suit or spark your interests. I tend to gravitate towards programs that challenge me and allow me to excel as a firefighter and an individual. The programs I am currently assigned to are Property DRMO, CPR/EMS, ARFF No Foam Pump Test and Rescue Programs. I am a certified CPR/First Aid and EVOC instructor.

What is a typical day like?

In Souda Bay, it’s a lot of administrative work. But we do train on a consistent basis, to help us maintain our skillset and mental readiness. A typical day consists of detailed scheduled trainings both in and out of the classroom. We have leaders who are very interactive and are not afraid to get their hands dirty. The knowledge is driven by firefighters that have served in different parts of the world, to which they share their personal experiences with everyone. For instance, today’s training day was gruesome. We have a HAZMAT, aircraft rescue, firefighting, rope rescue and CPR training going on simultaneously. Everyone does their part, both American and Greek firefighters work hand-in-hand to get the job done, and I couldn’t have asked for a better team. I wake up every day enthusiastic to go to work because of the family dynamic we have created at the Fire House.

What do you like to do outside of work?

I am a barber and a fitness enthusiast. Barbering is a passion of mine that allows me to be creative. At the fire station, I cut most of the fire fighters’ hair during our off time, which helps me maintain my skills. My wife and I have CrossFit equipment, but we drop in occasionally at some of the local CrossFit gyms in Crete. As for activities, my kids like to go to the beach – the beaches here are beautiful. But we are looking forward to traveling throughout Europe because we want to experience other cultures and make memories as a family.

Do you have any travel plans?

Our first trip is to Santorini next month. We like to be spontaneous when it comes to making travel plans. We are always open to traveling to new places with some of the other fire families. I just purchased a drone, so we are looking forward to capturing some amazing views in our travels.

What do you want Team Souda to know?

Regarding the programs we facilitate, Souda Bay members are more than welcome to attend our CPR classes. Miguel Saul is the lead instructor for the CPR program. If anyone is interested in attending the class, they can contact myself or Miguel. The station is flexible, so I’m sure we can have a tour for kids and families, if they would like to check out our fire trucks and other apparatuses we have at NSA Souda Bay.