OCC Vikings Alumna Simi Clapman Launches Women in Red Initiative

Toms River, NJ - Spring 2020 Ocean County College graduate and former four-sport student-athlete (Women's Soccer, Women's Basketball, Softball, Women's Lacrosse) Simi Clapman recently launched Women in Red, an initiative created to serve her fellow female firefighters. Women in Red seeks to provide females in her profession with a basket of essentials that may not be readily available in a male-dominated fire station. As Simi, a volunteer firefighter with the Lakewood Township (NJ) Fire Department puts it, this project was a long time coming: "I started my organization, Women in Red, because I want to distribute a basket for the female firefighters who may have forgotten a tampon, a ponytail, or basic necessities while responding to a call or are in the fire department and in need. I hope this basket is appreciated and used by all female firefighters!"

"As a young girl I was inspired by all of the brave firefighters who put their lives on the line everyday, and I am still now inspired by them even while being a firefighter myself," stated Clapman. "In my fire academy, I was the only female. This opened my eyes to see the gap between genders in the fire community. As women, we have different needs than men, and because of the fire community being predominantly male, it is more catered towards them. My goal is to establish a community of women in the first responder world."