- [Michael] Tonight on "WPBS Weekly Inside the Stories."

The Watertown Fire Chief, Matt Timmerman, joins Johnny Spezzano for a fiery segment of Johnny On Fire.

Learn essential fire safety tips and discover how easy it is to create half-hot stuffed peppers.

And Homes for Heroes, tiny home village in Kingston, Ontario offers support services to help veterans transition into civilian life and maintain stable housing.

We'll tell you how.

Your stories your region coming up right now on "WPBS Weekly: Inside the Stories."

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] "WPBS Weekly: Inside the Stories" is brought to you by.

- [Announcer] When you're unable to see your primary care provider, the Carthage Walk-In Clinic is here for you, located off Route 26 across from Carthage Middle School.

Comfort and healing close to home when you need it most.

- [Announcer] North Country Orthopaedic Group is there for your urgent ortho or sports-related injuries.

With our onsite surgical center and same or next day appointments, we're ready to provide care for patients of all ages.

Your health matters to us.

North Country Orthopaedic Group, keeping healthcare local.

- [Announcer] We are the North Country.

We're protecting one another, like family is who we are, and where our tomorrow will always be worth defending.

Find out how we keep the North Country strong at claxtonhepburn.org today.

- [Announcer] Additional support is provided by the estate of Evelyn Peckham.

- Good Tuesday evening, everyone, and welcome to this edition of "WPBS Weekly: Inside the Stories."

I'm Michael Riecke.

We kick things off in the kitchen of Johnny Spezzano tonight.

He teams up with Watertown Fire Chief, Matthew Timmerman.

Matt shares some essential fire safety tips as they create easy to make, but oh, so delicious half-hot stuffed peppers.

(people chattering) - Hey, come one.

(upbeat music) Hello, my friends, and welcome to another Johnny on Fire.

I'm Johnny Spezzano, and my guest in the kitchen today is Watertown Fire Chief, Matt Timmerman.

How you doing, Matt?

- I'm doing great.

- I feel much safer having you here, having the fire nearby and feels good.

- Pleasure to be here.

- Yeah.

So what are we cooking today?

- We're gonna do half-hots today.

- I love this.

Half-hots are a North Country favorite, and I understand this is a firehouse recipe.

- Yeah, so when I first got on the job, I worked for a couple of officers that made these in the summers when we're working night shift.

And so, you know, we'd have these.

They'd make some, freeze them, and we'd take, you know, we'd have some for dinner that night.

It's fantastic.

- Half-hots are awesome.

All right, so let's talk about our ingredients.

Of course, we've got our half-hot peppers.

All right, our also known as Hungarian peppers, all right.

We also have what?

Italian sausage.

- [Matt] Yep, exactly.

- [Johnny] Okay.

Ground beef.

We have some Parmesan cheese, some blue cheese.

Here, mixing the cheese- - [Matt] Gorgonzola, yeah.

- [Johnny] Oh, there's Gorgonzola.

- Like, the Gorgonzola inside the peppers.

- This is fancy.

- And the Parmesan on top.

- All right, little garlic, little basil, little rice.

- Correct.

- All right, so we're gonna cut these and stuff them.

We're gonna get started right now by combining our meat mixture and sauteing it.

So if you hand me that cast iron skillet, I already put some, I already put some oil in there.

So we'll go sausage.

Okay.

Nice Italian sausage, all right.

By the way, we're gonna serve these half-hot peppers with some pasta and sauce as well.

So that's a good way to have them or you can have them on their own as well.

So what do you think?

Equal parts meat?

Equal parts- - [Matt] Yeah, I'd say 50-50.

- [Johnny] All right.

- [Matt] Whatever you happen to have.

- All right.

All right.

So we've got our oil in our pan.

Now, let's put it in the wood fire oven.

(bright music) (pan sizzling) - [Matt] Looks great, Johnny.

- It really does.

We need to let it cool now, Matt.

So what we'll do is we'll set it to the side.

It'll keep cooking in that cast iron.

- Yep.

- I'm going to add it to this bowl right here right now like this.

So it stops.

So now, the peppers.

Let's talk a little bit about pepper safety.

- Yeah.

- These are hot.

- Absolutely.

- I mean, they can be.

- Yep.

- Or should we say half-hot?

- Well, they're half-hots, but they're all hot when you get them on your hands.

- Yeah.

Now, a lot of people wear gloves, but we're men.

- Right, absolutely.

- We don't need that.

So let's grab a knife.

We're gonna take our pepper.

We're gonna cut the ends off.

Like this.

Is this how you do them at the fire station?

- [Matt] Yep.

- And then we're gonna remove the seeds if you want.

You can do this.

Now, if you've ever had crushed red pepper, I don't know if you know this, it's the seeds that make it hot.

So if you don't remove all the seeds from your pepper, it's going to be hotter.

So tell me again, you said, of course, you guys are a full-time firefighters.

You guys live at the station, right?

- [Matt] We do.

- [Johnny] A lot of times.

And you have a kitchen there.

- [Matt] We do.

- You take turns?

You have different recipes each night?

- Yeah, we do.

There's some guys that really like to cook, other guys that will cook occasionally, and others that we don't let in the kitchen.

- You know what, it sounds like it would be a good spinoff show.

It'd be a fight, you know, Cooking with Fire at the Fire Station.

- Right.

- Each night, a different firefighter could prep a meal.

I like it.

How many people usually are on duty over there?

- So we have 15 people on duty total throughout the city.

- Okay, mm-hmm.

- But that's spread amongst three stations.

So at the main station, we'll have nine people there.

- So you've always been a firefighter, did you?

- Yeah.

- Did you always wanna be a firefighter?

Is this your dream job that you're doing right now?

- I didn't start out that way.

I actually went to college to be a meteorologist.

- Oh, really?

- Yep.

- Oh, very cool.

- And I got partway through and Calc 3, and I did not like each other.

So it was about that time that I took a EMT class.

- Okay.

- And kind of got hooked on that and joined my local fire department.

That was back in, oh, man.

- Long ago.

- Yeah, that was a long time ago.

- It was a long time ago.

- It was like 1993.

- Now, look at you.

Now, you're the fire chief.

- Yes, yep.

- And I know we're gonna be talking a little bit about fire safety while you're here.

We have to.

- Absolutely.

- 'Cause that's a responsible thing to do.

And he brought a fire extinguisher.

- Just in case.

- And a smoke alarm, which we've been known to set off here at the Johnny on Fire kitchen.

All right, so we've got our peppers prepped.

So now, we're gonna have to take our stuffing and combine all of our ingredients for our half-hot dish.

(upbeat music) Let's talk about the rest of the ingredients.

We're gonna mix the meat mixture with what?

- Rice.

- Okay.

- Number one ingredient.

- [Johnny] That much you think?

- [Matt] Yeah, that seems about right.

- All right.

Now, you told me you guys aren't really into measuring it.

at the kitchen at the fire hall?

- No.

We usually just grab what we have out of the fridge.

Maybe go grab a little extra at the store and just kind of throw it all together.

- Yeah.

All right.

So rice, Gorgonzola.

- Yeah, a little bit of that.

- Mm.

Looks good, all right.

I won't put it all in, I'll save a little bit.

- [Matt] Yep.

- [Johnny] Okay.

What else you got here?

Garlic.

- [Matt] Some garlic, some basil.

- All right.

All right, got a little fresh garlic here.

Oh, this is my favorite thing to do on camera.

Give it a crush.

Just like that, okay.

We'll throw that right in there.

I like big pieces of garlic.

You all right with that?

- [Matt] Oh yeah, I'm big time garlic eater.

- Good.

All right, we got our garlic in there.

How about breadcrumbs?

- Yes.

- Okay.

Now, we put our meat mixture into the freezer for a little bit to cool it down.

So that way, it doesn't melt all the cheese, okay?

So we're going to add our meat mixture now.

Okay.

And we'll combine these ingredients.

Now, this looks good, right?

Now, imagine this stuffed in these peppers, baked, and then a nice side of pasta with some sauce.

Oh, so good.

- I'm really curious to see how your wood fire stove kind of chars up the outside.

- It's gonna be good.

(upbeat music) All right, so last thing but not least, we're gonna throw our eggs.

Now, you can throw a number of spices in as well.

The eggs do what?

- Just kind of bind everything together.

- [Johnny] Bring it all together, right?

You wanna do two eggs or one?

What do you think?

- [Matt] Probably one would do, I imagine.

- Okay.

Did you grow up here around this town or what?

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- Yep, I've lived in La Fargeville all my life, and Watertown is my second home.

- Great town.

And, of course, we can't say enough great things about you and all of our firefighters 'cause you're the guys who get up in the middle of the night to save our possessions and our lives.

- They're a great bunch of guys, yeah.

- So, thank you.

Whether you're a volunteer or a city firefighter, we do appreciate you.

EMS, all of you.

All right.

How do you like to stuff these?

What do you do?

I got a fork over there.

- Yeah, let's do that.

That's easy.

- Okay.

Give you that.

Hand me one more, or go ahead, you can show them how to do it.

- Okay.

- Show us how to do it.

- And the longer one's a little more difficult.

You gotta kind of pack it in there good.

- So keep in mind, we cooked all this up.

I've seen people do it before where they put the raw meat inside.

I don't advise that.

So what we're gonna do next is once we get these stuffed, we're gonna bake them until they get soft and golden brown.

- They do smell good already.

- Yeah.

Throw it right in this pan if you want.

I'll grab a fork and help you, my friend.

(upbeat music) All right, my friend.

I think that's our last pepper that we're gonna fit in this pan.

So we're gonna stick these right into the oven right now and let them soften up.

And our fire's going good.

What do you think of that fire?

- I like it a lot.

- You like that?

All right.

(upbeat music) All right.

So while our half-hot peppers are cooking in the wood fire, we're gonna talk to Watertown Fire Chief, Matt Timmerman, a little bit about fire safety.

Of course, you brought some of the tools of the trade.

- I did.

- Should everybody have one of these in their home?

- Absolutely.

Every kitchen, especially.

So just a small 2.5 pound extinguisher.

Just like this is perfect for your kitchen.

Get one, put it in a cabinet somewhere where you're familiar with it, and it'll be there when you need it.

- It can save your whole house from burning down.

- Absolutely, yeah.

- Right.

- Yeah, there's lots of ways you can put out fires in the kitchen, you know, with lids.

You know, be careful about putting water on grease fires in the kitchen.

But something like this is perfect.

- So scary thing is, yeah, you've got a pan, it catches on fire.

First thing you wanna do is spray water on it or throw water on it.

That can actually spread the fire.

- Absolutely.

A lot of times, when we see a pan that has oil in it, that catches fire, by the time we get there, the kitchen's already burned up.

But we can often see where somebody has, they've realized they've got a fire in that pan.

Their first intention is to take it over to the sink, put water on it.

Grab it.

Even with pot holders, they usually only get a couple steps away from the stove before they realize it's too hot.

And then you drop it and, poof.

- And then boom, yeah.

- You get really bad burns.

- So one situation turns into a more worse.

- Exactly.

- Scenario.

- Yep, absolutely.

So if you had an extinguisher or a pan lid, something like that, that would take care of that problem right off the bat.

- All right, the next tool of the trade.

- Probably the most important one, smoke alarms.

About half the fire deaths in the country come from houses that don't have functioning smoke detectors.

Super critical.

This is the single most important thing you can do to improve your chances of surviving a fire.

A lot of problems that we see is that, number one, sometimes the batteries go bad and we're getting away from that with the 10, the lifetime warrant or the lifetime batteries inside the detectors.

But the other issue is, sometimes we put them in the wrong spot.

So especially in a kitchen, if we put the smoke detector right above the stove, we're gonna get a lot of nuisance activations.

And when the smoke detector is a nuisance, what do we do?

We take it down.

- Right.

Or take the battery out or.

- So, yeah, exactly.

So it's critical to put it in the right spot.

- Yeah.

It can really make a difference.

And while you're sleeping, it's awake.

- Yeah, absolutely.

- And that's the big safety factor there.

- You're a little warm, Johnny.

- I gotta tell you something.

He gave me, this is, what do you call this?

- This is, I mean, turnout jacket- - Turnout jacket.

He gave it to me to try on for this segment.

This is heavy.

Do you know how much it weighs?

- That's probably about 25 pounds.

- Yeah.

I feel it weighing me down.

And, of course, the helmet as well.

I don't know how do you guys fight a fire and be so hot.

- Wow, it's the only way to do it, obviously, right?

- It protects you, though.

- Yeah.

- Keeps you protected.

- Yep.

We gotta insulate ourselves from that heat.

Unfortunately, it keeps all of our body heat inside.

So, just gotta toughen up.

- So as far as becoming a firefighter, what would you suggest people do out there?

Urge them to be a part of their local volunteer fire departments.

- Yeah, that's a great start.

So you can get familiar with the department, you can get a taste for it, see if you like that kind of work.

So that's a great route into the fire service.

And then if you wanna do it for a career, it's important that you take civil service exams.

So if you wanna become a career firefighter, you can take a civil service exam and score well on that, and then we'll bring you in for an interview.

- Outstanding stuff.

So I guess we should eat.

- Yeah, they smell great.

I'm gonna, they do smell great.

We're gonna take them out of the oven.

Even though I'm in full gear, I can be protected.

Remember, our local firefighters work hard for us every day to keep us safe, and we do appreciate them.

And now, my stomach's gonna appreciate if we try these firehouse recipe, half-hots.

- Let's do it.

- Alright, let's do it.

(upbeat music) All right, chief, I think they're ready.

- Yeah.

- Let's get them out.

All right, let's see.

Ooh.

Half-hots looking hot.

Look at that.

- [Matt] They look awesome.

- [Johnny] Which one do you want?

- I'll take this half.

- All right, the half of the pan.

All right, so just so you know, I also grabbed, I made up some pasta for us to have along with our half-hots, just to do it right.

For you, sir.

- I ain't gonna lie.

- [Johnny] Yeah?

- These are the best looking half-hots I've ever seen.

- Really?

- Yeah, you may actually have ruined me for regular orders.

- Thanks.

All right, so we'll do, we'll, actually, I'll wait.

We'll put the half-hots on the on the plate and then we'll sauce.

All right, I feel like this one.

You look a little?

- [Matt] Yep.

- [Johnny] A little caramelized.

- [Matt] Looks great.

- Okay.

And I'll take this one.

Okay.

All right.

We'll sauce them up.

You get that cheese ready, Matt.

- Will do.

- Okay.

Okay.

This guy with the fresh parm.

- Say when.

- Perfect.

Wait, good.

I'm just kidding.

All right.

These are half-hots, friends and they're just delicious.

So we're gonna try them out.

And again, these are the firehouse recipe, straight from the Watertown Fire Department.

And here we go.

All right, let's give it our best shot.

- Cheers.

- Cheers.

- Mm.

- Nailed it.

- You've done it.

Amazing.

- Those are awesome.

- Delicious stuff.

Do I have something on my face?

Every time.

Thank you so much for coming into my kitchen.

Chief, thank you.

Appreciate it.

- I appreciate it.

- Thanks for showing us this awesome recipe.

Remember, you can see all the episodes, all the past episodes we've been doing for the last two years at wpbstv.org.

Check out my "Dinner at Johnny's" podcast.

Listen to me on The Border 106.7.

And we will see you next time with Johnny on Fire.

Mm.

I just gotta keep eating.

These are great.

- If you're looking for more great fire grilled recipes from Johnny, visit wpbstv.org and scroll through our library.

And if you'd like to be a guest on the segment, all you need to do is drop us an email at wpbsweekly@wpbstv.org.

Make sure you include your name and fire grilled recipe idea.

Homes for Heroes, tiny home village in Kingston, Ontario has the goal to be a place of community, camaraderie, and celebration.

The organization offers a range of support services to help veterans transition into civilian life, including job training, mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment, and more.

An essential service includes that of maintaining stable housing.

Here's Gail Paquette with more.

(group applauding) - [Gail] In response to the growing number of military veterans who are facing crisis as they return to civilian life and find themselves on the path to homelessness, the Homes for Heroes Foundation was developed.

Founder, David Howard, for more than two decades, has worked to support the men and women who have stood on guard for Canada.

- I've been supporting our vets for 25 years, and I got involved because of my grandfather.

My grandfather didn't know, he was disassociated with the family.

He was an alcoholic.

He'd suffered with shell shock, which is post-traumatic stress, as we call it today.

I saw a broken man.

And so I got involved and I started a charity called Canadian Legacy Project.

And we started food banks and we started post-traumatic stress programming.

- [Gail] Within David's work in the veteran community, he saw a dramatic increase in veterans experiencing homelessness and the need for a solution.

The first step at Homes for Heroes was to meet with veterans across Canada.

- We hired a researcher and we went out and we met with 200 vets.

And we said, "You know, if we were to build a program, what does it look like?"

And that's what this is now.

So the tiny homes really worked out 'cause we started doing the research in regards to size, and the size aspect is the idea that this is manageable.

Apartment buildings, though, they felt closed off, right?

And some of them are just too big.

So building these communities of tiny homes, inward-facing, looking after each other, but the key is the support services.

- [Gail] Many veterans are ingrained with a sense of self-reliance and stoicism, values often emphasized in military training.

This can make it difficult for them to acknowledge the need for help.

Many veterans take pride in their ability to overcome challenges independently, and some may simply not be aware of the resources and support available to them.

- In the first week that we were open, one person said, "I'm not ready.

I'm not ready to do this."

And voluntarily withdrew.

So they sit down and they're interviewed.

We've got two full-time counselors, and they get interviewed here.

And a program is developed specifically for them.

Now, it could be that, you know, you have a bad knee that's contributing to your problem.

We're gonna get your physio.

It could be that, you know, you saw some things which people shouldn't see and can't forget and you can't sleep at night, and that's caused some sort of chemical dependency.

So we're gonna get your counseling for these things.

So they identify the targets of treatment, but they also say, "Okay, so where did you go and what did you do?

What are you entitled to as a veteran?"

And I'll tell you what, most veterans, and I'm gonna say like 90% of veterans, do not know the programs that they're entitled to.

Provincial and federal programs and possibly, I'm not sure, municipal programs, they allow these veterans to have enough revenue that they can now afford a roof over their head.

And that's the start.

- [Gail] Residency in the village will be temporary with the goal of having each veteran leave the village and reenter mainstream society, employed, stable, and self-sufficient.

The veterans must commit to the program, and more importantly, to themselves.

- At the end of the day, it's about the program working with that veteran so they don't end up back on the street again.

So we check in with our veterans.

Our expectations with them is, you know, at least once a week, we're having a discussion about, "Okay, what's the plan for next?"

If we're looking for work, "Okay, your goal here is job?

Okay.

Who have you applied to?

Have we built out your resume?

Have we taught you interview skills?"

You know, a lot of these veterans, they've never had to look for work.

They literally have left home after high school, gone straight into the mil.

They've never had a job as per se a normal job.

They've worked in the military, but they've never actually interviewed for a job.

They have no idea how to build a resume.

So yeah, it's a program, it's not just housing.

- [Gail] With a mission to end homelessness in Canada, Homes for Heroes are operating veterans villages in Calgary, Edmonton, and the newest here in Kingston with plans for Winnipeg underway.

Their bold expansion plans include locations from coast to coast across Canada.

- We will end the issue of homelessness.

Look, in two years, we've taken 87 people off the street and got them into working.

We had a gentleman in Vancouver, okay?

He is in Vancouver living in a car, living in a car that doesn't work.

Three years, he's living in that car in a parking lot, okay?

We get him to Edmonton.

First week, we get him funding.

Second week, we get him job training.

Fourth week, he's working.

Four months, he's moved out.

- Vets we're talking about really are the ones from Afghanistan, Somalia, places where we've been deployed.

The interesting thing is, as long as Canada is a member of NATO and the United Nations, we're gonna keep sending soldiers to these horrible places, and they're gonna keep coming back broken.

That's gonna keep happening.

So this is not really a problem that's going to go away, and it's a problem that we've probably had for 150 years.

We just didn't do anything about it.

- It really comes down to just personal, "How did I affect at least one person's life every day?"

Being able to look into the mirror and know that I've had a positive effect in someone's life, and in some cases, I've actually saved someone's life, you can't have anything more powerful than that.

- For "WPBS Weekly," I'm Gail Paquette.

- For more information, visit homesforheroesfoundation.ca/ Before we wrap things up tonight, here's a look at what's happening in your community on both sides of the border for the month of October.

(people chattering) (bright music) That does it for this Tuesday night.

Join us next time for a fresh look inside the stories.

We go inside the studio for a very special interview with vocational archeologist, Ken Knapp, who discusses the fascinating history of indigenous residents in the Thousand Islands.

And with origins that date back to 1650s France, the Sisters of St. Joseph Convent in Watertown have long dedicated themselves to education and social service.

Meantime, if you have a story idea you'd like us to explore, we'd love to learn more.

All you need to do is drop us an email at wpbsweekly@wpbstv.org, and let's share it with the region.

That's it for tonight, everyone.

We'll see you real soon.

On behalf of everyone working hard behind the scenes here at "WPBS Weekly," I'm Michael Riecke.

Have a great night.

- [Announcer] "WPBS Weekly: Inside the Stories" is brought to you by.

- [Announcer] When you're unable to see your primary care provider, the Carthage Walk-In Clinic is here for you, located off Route 26 across from Carthage Middle School.

Comfort and healing close to home when you need it most.

- [Announcer] North Country Orthopaedic Group is there for your urgent ortho or sports-related injuries.

With our onsite surgical center and same or next day appointments, we're ready to provide care for patients of all ages.

Your health matters to us.

North Country Orthopaedic Group, keeping healthcare local.

- [Announcer] We are the North Country.

We're protecting one another, like family is who we are, and where our tomorrow will always be worth defending.

Find out how we keep the North Country strong at claxtonhepburn.org today.

- [Announcer] Additional support is provided by the estate of Evelyn Peckham.

- Cheers.

- Cheers.

- Mm.

- Nailed it.

- You've done it.

Amazing.

- Those are awesome.

- Delicious stuff.

Do I have something on my face?

Every time.

(gentle music)