Jon Gustafson is a multifaceted professional who seamlessly blends extensive frontline emergency service and firefighting leadership with advanced expertise in technology engineering. He has served as a firefighter instructor and trainer for over 20 years, mentoring responders in wildland and structural fire operations.
Jon began his firefighting career as a dedicated volunteer, eagerly pursuing every available training opportunity to build his skills and knowledge. He rapidly advanced from volunteer status to a paid-call firefighter, and ultimately rose to the role of Lead Firefighter, where he mentored and guided countless on-call responders in and around Southern California.
His relentless dedication and proven leadership opened numerous doors, including participation in multiple wildfire incidents throughout the Santa Monica Mountains and also numerous fire up the coast and northern California. Most notably, in the weeks following the September 11, 2001 attacks, Jon traveled to New York City to contribute to the rescue and recovery efforts at Ground Zero and also assisted impacted residents in the weeks after the disaster.
Among his early career highlights, Jon was honored in 2006 as one of the Volunteers of the Year by the Champions of Volunteerism organization in Ventura County, a testament to his exceptional commitment to community service and public safety.
As a former Lead Trainer and Reserve Firefighter with the Mountains Recreation Conservation Authority (MRCA), Jon supported 24/7 strike teams in safeguarding the Santa Monica Mountains and surrounding Los Angeles areas from 1998 to 2010. He played a key role in building critical infrastructure for wildland fire protection, including developing training centers, acquiring and preparing equipment for fleet in-service, and establishing on-call living facilities for rapid incident response—while honing skills in high-pressure decision-making, team coordination, risk assessment, and cadet mentorship.
Currently, Jon works as a firefighter technology consultant with the United States Forest Service (USFS) and National Incident Management Organization (NIMO) team. In this role, he deploys to complex Type 1 incidents providing specialized technology support to enhance incident management, communications, and operational efficiency. He has also contributed to community recovery efforts, including touring the aftermath of Hurricane Helene with NIMO to help devastated areas rebuild and regain stability.
In the technology sector, Jon has built a distinguished career with Fortune 100 companies, including J.D. Power & Associates/McGraw-Hill and ADP, where he has served as an Engineer focused on enterprise software solutions, systems engineering, process optimization, and innovative problem-solving to support global business operations.
Driven by a passion for public safety, preparedness, and the innovative application of technology in emergency response, Jon continues to bridge these worlds—delivering reliability, rapid adaptation, and impactful solutions that protect lives and communities. FAST FIRE NETWORK serves as that next step: an all-in-one platform to build unprecedented resiliency, connect communities and professionals in the Santa Monica Mountains, and set a new standard for wildfire preparedness and response.
Jon Gustafson
2006
REAGAN LIBRARY
