Winnie Pajcic, C’25

Politics and religious studies major, Sewanee volunteer firefighter, varsity lacrosse player, Phi Kappa Epsilon sorority member

What drew me to Sewanee was the range of opportunities—wherever you have interests, Sewanee has a place for you. I came here knowing I would play lacrosse. But then at orientation there was an event where all the student firefighters went up on stage and I saw Jenn, who’s now my roommate and one of my best friends, up there. At that time, she was the only woman firefighter. I saw her and absolutely admired her. I thought, ‘How cool is she to be up there with all those guys?’ It piqued my interest. I was looking for a way to serve in the community—a huge part of my faith is service—and this seemed like an opportunity to serve by applying my strengths as a leader and as an athlete. Everyone I met in the fire department was so encouraging and told me to put in the work and go for it.

We have a six-week tryout process that leads up to an interview, a written test, and a physical test. As an athlete I was already doing some cardio and weightlifting, so for me the physical training was about adding weight and heat. I wore a weighted vest, sweatpants, and sweatshirt for all my training to get ready to wear all the gear. It’s hot—but so is fire. Mentally, you have to be able to stay tough. I learned that on the lacrosse field. You get beaten down and then you pick yourself up, because you have teammates around you who need your help. I’m not treated any differently in the fire department because of my gender. Because we’ve had that shared experience of tryouts and training, we’re all expected to lug the weight. Your size doesn’t matter. I do what you do, and we respect each other in that way.

My community at Sewanee—the firefighters, my lacrosse teammates, my sorority sisters, and peers from classes—has made me more well-rounded. I’m able to interact with people from different places with different desires and interests, and I’ve learned about finding common ground to be able to respect our differences. It can be challenging trying to balance my commitments with a social life and making time for those deep-rooted friendships that Sewanee has given me. But I feel like the mental toughness and ability to focus that I’ve gained from being involved with the fire department and athletics have prepared me to be able to do it.