Sam began his career with the Chula Vista Fire Department in 2006, hoping to make the community, in which he and his family lived, a safer place. Coming to the department from the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC), Sam quickly became the department's "go to" for highly technical life safety questions. In 2011, Sam was recognized by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, as a firefighter demonstrating "personal courage and ever-vigilant guardianship of life and property." His interests included spending time with his wife and three children, camping, riding his Harley motorcycle and playing the piano on his church worship team. Sam passed away earlier this year as the result of a job-related heart attack.