On March 4, 2015, Julie Griessmeyer started her career as a full-time firefighter with the Fitchburg Fire Department as the first career female firefighter the the department. FF Griessmeyer started working for the fire department in September of 2013 as a Paid-On-call firefighter.
Julie Griessmeyer (nee Eckerly) was born and raised in Columbus, Indiana. After high school, she attended and graduated from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee with a bachelors in biology. She moved to Madison in early 2009 to pursue a job with a pharmaceutical research organization. A career change took her to a local running shoe store where she acted as an apparel and accessories buyer for a couple of years.
Julie entered the fire service in 2012 after being encouraged by a local division chief to pursue firefighting. She put herself back through school at Madison College to earn her Firefighter I and II certifications as well as her EMT-Basic license. Outside of work, Julie is passionate about maintaining a healthy lifestyle through exercise and diet. She loves running, biking, taking boot camp classes, and teaching at a local gym. She and her husband, Clay, are a big couple through the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and enjoy sharing their active lifestyle with their little brother.
Julie is excited to be the first full-time female for the Fitchburg Fire Department and looks forward to helping her community in any way that she can.