South County Fire welcomes its first openly transgender firefighter

Published 1:30 am Saturday, March 21, 2026

EVERETT — Jordyn Vaughn made history when he was sworn in as a firefighter with South County Fire last year.

Vaughn, 26, is the first openly transgender firefighter in the department. Vaughn finished his probationary period last month and also works as a paramedic for South County Fire.

He grew up in Snohomish and graduated from Snohomish High School in 2017. There were some times firefighters came to his home growing up, which inspired him to go pursue firefighting as a career, he said.

“I’ve always had this innate drive to want to help others and make an impact,” Vaughn said. “And I felt that firefighting was the best way — and honestly the coolest way — to do it.”

After high school, he joined the Washington Army National Guard as a combat medic to get his EMT license. Then, he went to Idaho State University for paramedic school and worked in Ada County as a paramedic for a few years. But he always wanted to be a firefighter.

“South County sounded like it had a really reputable reputation, and it’s something I really wanted to be a part of,” Vaughn said. “So that’s what led me back here.”

Vaughn felt different as a kid, but he didn’t have the words to describe it, he said. He grew up with three older brothers.

“I hung out with them, I wore all their clothes, and I just didn’t see myself as anything other than just a kid,” he said. “And then you go through puberty, and you start to realize you’re different.”

Around the time he graduated high school, Vaughn started meeting other transgender people, and he finally had the words for what he had been feeling, he said. When he was 18, he started counseling.

“I think that people think that trans people make this decision lightly,” Vaughn said. “It’s never been a light decision.”

Three years later, right when he started paramedic school, he started transitioning.

“It was a little intimidating, knowing that this was the career path I wanted, because fire departments and the culture in general has a certain reputation,” Vaughn said. “But I think people would be really surprised about how developed the culture of firefighting actually is. I don’t think it gets enough credit.”

While he’s faced some scrutiny, Vaughn said he has overall received overwhelming support from his peers in both Idaho and South County.

“Sometimes, when people find out that you’re trans, they treat you differently, or like you’re not one of the boys,” he said. “From the people I’ve interacted with at South County, I’ve never felt that. I’ve always been one of the boys, one of the guys, part of the family.”

Toward the end of his time in the academy, Vaughn remembers pulling out his driver’s license when he was sitting next to his friend. His friend saw it, and Vaughn told his friend he was transgender.

“He was like, ‘That’s sick,’ and gave me a handshake and a hug, and that was the end of it,” Vaughn said.

South County Fire Capt. AJ Johnson was Vaughn’s first adviser after he finished the fire academy. He said that from the very first day, he was impressed with Vaughn’s ability to work under stress and quickly transfer his paramedic skills to a new state. When Johnson found out Vaughn was transgender, he thought of him as just another person working at the fire department, he said.

“I just thought, ‘Okay, this is a person who works here, and as long as they can meet the standards, they’re going to do just fine,’” Johnson said.

Vaughn said that in his time with South County Fire so far, he’s been able to help his coworkers feel more comfortable with asking medical assessment questions to transgender patients.

“We work in a diverse community, and I think it’s important for the community to see that we are a diverse group of people also, and I think that for some people, that allows them to trust us a little more,” Johnson said.

Vaughn said his hometown of Snohomish has become more accepting over the past several years, and now when he goes home, people are happy to see the person he’s become.

“Being transgender is the last thing about me,” Vaughn said. “I’m a husband, I’m a son, I’m an uncle, and I love my family, and I’m a firefighter and paramedic who happens to be transgender. I’m proud of the man I’ve become.”

Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.