Kate Dargan (Jacobsen, class of 1976) has made her mark in a predominately male profession.

Dargan, former Napa County fire marshal, has been appointed by the governor as California Department of Forestry state assistant fire marshal. A 27-year-veteran firefighter, Dargan has worked her way up the ranks from a seasonal firefighter to her latest promotion.

Dargan, 46, came to Napa as the county fire marshal in 2001. Napa County contracts with CDF for fire services in the unincorporated areas of the county. Unlike firefighters, the fire marshal office focuses on fire prevention.

Dargan is proud of her accomplishments during her tenure in Napa County.

"We revamped the fire marshal office. Improving customer service was one of our top priorities. Most people view the government as an obstacle. We wanted to change that way of thinking and let the public know our philosophy is that we're here to help the public get its projects done quickly, cheaply and as safe as possible," Dargan said.

Much of Dargan's duties included working with builders and architects, making sure they met building codes and standards. She is also proud of her work with the county to ensure the cost of fire marshal services is not passed on to the taxpayer, but rather the responsibility of the developer.

"We recognized Napa County builders wanted things done their particular way. We worked to make sure we made codes and standards that were fair for everyone ... and everyone was treated equal," Dargan said. "We improved the wine cave ordinance and (implemented) the Firewise project."

Dargan, along with Napa City Fire Marshal Darren Drake and other fire officials, put together the Firewise plan, which includes the guidelines to teach county residents how to protect their lives and homes from fire. The program built partnerships with builders, developers and other business leaders.

"We both recognized that forming partnerships would be beneficial for us to accomplish the scope of what we were trying to accomplish. Kate's vision and professionalism made her instrumental in co-chairing the wildland urban interface committee," said Drake. "She has great planning skills and the ability and vision to bring everything together."

In her new job, Dargan will answer to CDF State Fire Marshal Ruben Grijalva. Under Grijalva's guidance, Dargan will oversee the state fire codes, licensing for fireworks, fire safety regulations, the state pipe line, land use policy, building standards and the CDF fire training programs.

Dargan met Grijalva, who was also new to the job, last year at a CDF meeting in Napa.

"When the meeting was over, Ruben and I had iced tea and talked for about three hours. He talked about projects in the state fire marshal office and wanted me to come to work with him in Sacramento," Dargan said. "But I turned him down. I was very happy with what I was doing in Napa County."

However, things worked out differently.

Last March, Dargan heard Grijalva speak at a leadership conference in Southern California.

"After listening to him speak about the need for leadership in fire services and the issues at hand, I was motivated. I told the people who were sitting at my table, 'I want to work for that man,'" she said.

And the rest is history.

"I was appointed by Gov. Schwarzenegger, and I'm a democrat," Dargan said with a wide grin.

Grijalva said he believes Dargan's experience as Napa County fire marshal and as a firefighter will be a big asset for CDF.

"Kate has been working in fire prevention and built a lot of relationships with fire marshals throughout the state. I have watched her work with large groups and deal with controversial issues, and she has been able to bring everyone together," Grijalva said. "She has provided outstanding leadership. Kate is very articulate and knowledgeable about fire services."

Dargan has paid her dues to achieve a high position in a mostly male-dominated profession.

"There are still just a handful of women who have been able to make it to high-ranking positions in fire services. To get to the higher positions, you have to have years of experience. I don't think women really started taking a serious interest being firefighters until the late '70s," Dargan said. "We certainly have seen many more women firefighters in the past 10 years."

A camping trip in Dargan's senior year of high school sparked her first interest in a career in fire services.

"We were sitting around a campfire with the people who were camping next to us. They were smoke jumpers for fire services. I was just looking for a summer job, but they got me fired up about being part-time firefighter," she said.

Dargan followed her gut feelings and took a job fresh out of high school as a seasonal firefighter in 1977 in Santa Cruz County.

"I had two captains who really put their faith in me. They took me aside and told me they were going to teach me how to do the job," she said. "They never made me feel different because I was a woman. Some of the other firefighters did, but not those two."

Dargan was only the job two weeks when she was part of team sent to fight the Marble Cove Fire in Big Sur in 1977.

"I was one of more than 1,000 firefighters, I spent the whole two weeks with my eyes about size of pie plates. I was just taking it all in and loving every minute of it. It was then, I was just 18, right out of high school, that I knew this was what I going to do with my life. And I have never regretted it," she said.

Dargan went to full time in 1980, where she worked as an engineer in Monterey County.

"I drove the fire engine, which was something few women firefighters did at that time," she said. "People would stop, look and point -- 'a woman is driving the fire engine,' they would say."

She was promoted to captain fighting wildland fires. During her career, Dargan also was assigned as a spotter with the air attack planes, where she was promoted to battalion chief.

"I knew how to fly the plane in case of an emergency. But I never got my pilot license. You have to rack up a lot of flying time, and at that time I was also busy raising two sons," she said.

Dargan has racked up many highlights during the decades she has been with the fire services. But the one that stands out the most is the 2003 Cedar Fire in San Diego -- the largest fire in the state's history.

"It was extremely demanding. People, including firefighters, were traumatized. Everything was moving so fast. It's not even the fire that stands out the most for me, it was the connection we made with the victims. People homes were gone. Everywhere you turned there was devastation," Dargan said. "Families left with nothing. A firefighter lost his life in that fire. It was total chaos, and it was our job to manage that chaos."

Dargan was born in Iowa City, Iowa and moved to California was she was 13. She graduated from Half Moon Bay High School and earned a bachelor's of science degree from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo in 1985.

She is married to Tom Berry, a retired CDF chief, who now works part-time as a Napa County safety officer. She has two grown sons and a step-son.

Although Dargan has pulled up stakes in Napa County to work in Sacramento, she plans to continue to live in her Browns Valley home.

"I know it will be a commute every day to work, but I love Napa and want to make it my home for as long as I'm around," she said.