Candidate for
Councilmember; City of Los Angeles; District 15

Pat McOsker is running for Los Angeles City Council to serve the communities that he has fought to protect, and to continue his work as an advocate for public safety, fire protection and emergency medical services.

Pat has worked as a Los Angeles Firefighter for 31 years, joining the Los Angeles Fire Department at age 19. He has worked at every neighborhood fire station in the 15th District as well as at stations throughout the City. He helped protect the public's safety at numerous fires, including the First Interstate Fire in 1988, in South L.A. during the 1993 civil disturbance, and at major brush fires throughout the region. As a Rookie, he was assigned to Fire Station #64 in Watts, and later returned there when he was promoted to the rank of Engineer. Pat was also one of the first EMT trained firefighters in the Los Angeles Fire Department, and received his emergency rescue credential at Harbor College, where he took night classes.

Pat was elected President of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City in 2003, where he has worked to advocate on behalf of fire protection and emergency rescue services. He has stood up against cuts to fire protection, and fought against the city's policy of fire engine and ambulance closures which reduce the number of on-duty fire and rescue personnel at stations throughout the City. Pat has also traveled to Sacramento and Washington to wage winning campaigns for federal and state support for L.A.'s fire protection and rescue operations.

Pat has experience and expertise when it comes to the management of public safety agencies. He is a member of the National Fire Protection Association's standard writing committee for the Organization and Deployment of Career Fire Departments. He was appointed by the Governor to the California State Board of Fire Services in 2009, and is a Vice President on the Executive Boards of the California Professional Firefighters and the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

As UFLAC President, Pat has supported programs that connect L.A.'s youth to jobs and opportunity. This includes the Fire Department's Explorer Program at Harbor College, which steers young men and women toward careers with the LAFD. Pat was recently honored by the Banning High School Fire Academy in Wilmington for supporting a program credited with turning around the lives of at-risk youths through disciplined training in fire service procedures. In his capacity at UFLAC, Pat has been called on many times to assist the families of fire fighters who have fallen in the line of duty or due to duty-connected illnesses. Pat learned the value of hard work at a young age. Before graduating from high school, he worked as a "swamper," loading cargo on and off shipping containers at a warehouse in Wilmington. He also worked at a ship supply company in Wilmington, and started a successful small business that provided office cleaning services, which he sold before joining the Fire Department.

The McOskers' roots in San Pedro run deep. Pat's parents, William and Patricia, met in high school when they were both working at the Warner Grand Theater. Pat got his education at local schools including South Shores Elementary, Holy Trinity, and Bishop Montgomery before becoming a Firefighter. He followed in the footsteps of his father when he joined the Fire Department; his father fought and helped to rescue victims at the site of the 1976 San Sinena Oil Tanker explosion in Los Angeles Harbor. One of Pat's proudest accomplishments is his work with Mayor Jim Hahn and then-Councilwoman Janice Hahn to enhance fire protection in San Pedro by opening Fire Station #36 on North Gaffey St.

Pat, a resident of Downtown San Pedro, has been married to his wife Carla for 24 years. Their son Emmett recently graduated from Loyola Marymount University.