- January 4, 2026
Since Ozzie Sene joined the Palm Coast Fire Department over two years ago, he took over the leadership role for the department’s Junior Firefighters Program, he passed his paramedic exam and received his paramedic clearance and he was promoted to driver/engineer.
Days before his Oct. 13, 2025 promotion and a month after he received his paramedic clearance, Sene was named the Flagler Palm Coast Kiwanis Club Firefighter of the Year for the PCFD.
In announcing Sene’s selection for the award, Palm Coast Fire Chief Kyle Berryhill said, “Ozzy exemplifies what it means to be a Palm Coast firefighter — committed, compassionate and community-minded.”
In nominating Sene for a 2026 Standing O, PCFD Chaplain and Driver Engineer Chris Cottle said, “Ozzie is always there to help with training and bringing up new firefighters.” Cottle was a 2025 Standing O recipient.
Sene, 24, is also a member of the department’s honor guard and is part of the department’s Technical Rescue Team. He is certified in confined space rescue and Vehicle and Machinery Rescue (VMR) Operations. Not wanting to ever quit being a student, Sene attends a lot of classes and conferences, and they have proved to be beneficial, he said.
“I’ve been a black cloud since I got here,” he said of being involved in several major calls. The most intense, he said, was when a man got trapped between the claws of an excavator.
“I feel some of the special ops classes like VMR and stuff like that helped the scene run smooth,” Sene said. “We were able to free him, and then we flew him out to (Halifax Health Medical Center). He got out of the hospital just fine.”
More recently, Sene was on call for his first structure fire as a driver engineer.
“You never want bad things to happen to people, but things do happen and I like to think that we have the best crew to do it,” Sene said. “In the fire service, we celebrate our job every day. We're fortunate to be a part of the greatest job in the world.”
Ozzie’s the exciting guy to be around. When you have somebody that's energetic and that passionate, you got to feed it, because they're the future leaders.
— PATRICK JULIANO, PCFD Battalion chief
Before he joined the Palm Coast department in 2023, Sene had been a firefighter in Sumter County for two years. He’s from the Miami area. Both of his parents immigrated from Cuba — his dad in the 1980s, his mom in the ’90s. His sister, a nursing student, also plans to go into public service. But his dad taught him his work ethic.
“He’s played a big role in making me the man I've become,” Sene said.
Sene took over the Junior Firefighters Program from Lt. Joseph Fajardo. He was a natural choice, Battalion chief Patrick Juliano said.
“Ozzy’s one of our newer and active firefighters who really has such passion for the fire service that he enjoys sharing,” Juliano said. “That's why we like him working with the young kids. He's young and energetic and full of firepower, and the kids love it. Ozzie’s the exciting guy to be around. When you have somebody that's energetic and that passionate, you got to feed it, because they're the future leaders.”
There are currently 22 teenagers in the Junior Firefighters program. They meet every Tuesday and one Saturday a month.
“I enjoy it,” Sene said of leading the program. “I think it's important that we teach the up-and-coming generation how important it is to do something greater than themselves. We put them through the grinder, pretty much. We get them in gear. If it’s bad weather we stay indoors and do medical scenarios. We teach the kids what it’s like to do it every third day and how to put other people first. It could be something as simple as changing a smoke detector or fighting fires.”
A few former Junior Firefighters are currently in fire school, Sene said. They could become the first graduates of the program to become members of the department.
“Ozzy’s a hard worker and a good soul through and through,” Juliano said.
Sene said that although he lives in Daytona Beach, he’s found a home with the Palm Coast Fire Department.
“Palm Coast is where I’ll retire. I’m going to work here for the rest of my career,” he said. “I feel like a lot of people say they want to be a firefighter to save lives and protect property. I just want to continue to do a service that's been around for hundreds of years. And I want to be able to have my name somewhere in that tradition, just continue to give back, do a service greater than me.”
