For a time, he was a salesman. He worked with all kinds of people at a Best Buy selling electronics getting to know his customers, listening to them and helping them find what they wanted. But in his heart, Michael Wessel, 22, was a firefighter. On Friday Nov. 19 Wessel completed an eight-week training program for the Wilmette Fire Department. He credits his past sales experience as one asset that will come in handy. "It gave me people skills," said Wessel. He is a tall young man with an easy smile, who speaks with a contagious enthusiasm. He has been at the Wilmette Fire Department just two…

As a boy, Michael Scheetz heard stories from his volunteer firefighter grandfather. Stories about helping people and saving his lives. Put a buzz in his ear, those stories did. A buzz he could not shake. Now, Scheetz will have his own stories to tell. On Nov. 19 Scheetz completed an eight-week training for the Wilmette Fire Department. "It's the best job in the world," said Scheetz, 32, from Crete, IL. "Helping people on their worst day ever. It's great. That's why I'm here." He had been working as a landscaper since about 1995, and credits the work with giving him physical strength and …