About Us

Chief Chaplain, Ordained and Co-Founder Josh Watts currently serves as the Fire Chief and Chaplain at the Mongo Fire Department in Mongo, IN and he is also an Army Veteran.  He is currently serving as the Pastor at Scott United Methodist Church,  and an Associate Chaplain with the IVFA. He has served as a volunteer firefighter in the State of Indiana for 24 years now and spent 13 of those years with the Mongo Fire Dept.  He has been married to his wife Bridget since 2004 and they have 4 children together. Bridget joined the Mongo Fire Department in December of 2019 and is currently serving as a Board Member and Treasurer for Shields Under Fire. 

Assistant Chaplain and Co-Founder Josh Phillips currently serves as the Safety Captain of the Mongo Fire Dept.  an EMT-Basic for Parkview LaGrange and he is also an Army Veteran. For the past 5 years, he has dedicated many hours to the fire department and earned the Medical Responder of the Year award 2 years straight.  Josh also coached middle school soccer at the local school and is involved with many local events.  Hosting a large display of Christmas lights every season, Josh and his wife Laura invite the public to see their display for free every year.  Along with their 5 children, they enjoy many adventures together.  

If there was ever a great reason to join Shields Under Fire, Chuck's story would define that reason.  After suffering the loss of his  son to cancer at the age of 7 his wife Kristin was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017. Chuck serves on the Mongo Fire Dept. as a Lieutenant and is making a difference in our community.  Since the launch of Shields Under Fire in July of 2018, Chuckie has helped define our mission and currently serves a board member. While sharing his story of heartbreak and loss he is the first to testify to the power of Christ and His ability to comfort us in our darkest hours. His wife Kristin lost her battle with cancer on June 28th, 2020. Since then, Chuckie has dedicated his time to making sure that those associated with Shields Under Fire know just how strong Kristin was, even in her final hours here on earth. Rest in Peace Kristin, We will miss you!

Dedicated to his family, Dave is willing to do what ever it takes to provide for his loved ones.  He brings this same dedication and drive to our mission.  2019 was a big year for Dave as he married his true love, Mary, joined the Mongo Fire Dept and became a founding member of Shields Under Fire.  His passion for helping others is strongly displayed in his actions and brought him an early career promotion to Lieutenant in 2020.  As a Army Veteran, he defines the primary meaning for leadership as he leads by example.  Dave and Mary  along with their daughters are enjoying their new home, journey through life together  and we are proud to have them as part of our family. Dave received a well deserved promotion on the fire department in 2021 to Captain.  

Nichole has served the community of Mongo, IN for the past 4 years as a Emergency Medical Responder and has actively been involved with numerous Fire Department events, such as the one picture here, Cookies with Santa.  Nichole has a strong sense of family and decided to get involved with the fire department to help give back to her community.  She comes to Shields Under Fire with a strong faith in God and wants to help serve the members of the Emergency Responder family at another level.  We are excited to have her on the team and know she will help make a difference in the lives of our brothers and sisters.

Skylar has served the community of Mongo as a Firefighter and EMR for over 8 years now.  He has held leadership positions to include Equipment Captain, Captain and promotion to Assistant Chief in 2021.  He is a certified Fire Instructor 1 and has strived to keep moving forward in the fire service.  He is married and has 2 sons.  Skylar has a long tract history of being involved with helping his community as he reached the level of Eagle Scout with the Boy Scouts of America.  This rank is difficult for some to earn but Skylar's dedication to excellence lead him to achieve this goal that he set years ago when he first joined the Boy Scouts of America.  He holds the same passion and desire when it comes to his family.  A dedicated father, husband and son sets him on a path to being a great addition to the Shields Under Fire team.  We expect to see great things form Skylar in the future. 

Doug at the age of  26 years old,  resides in Michigan is a US Army Medic Veteran and has served his community as a firefighter and served on EMS in the past.  Being the first member of Shields to live out side of Indiana, Doug has 3 kids and a beautiful wife.  He is currently serving as a reserve deputy with a sheriffs office in Michigan.  Doug brings a fresh insight into the organization and is our Ambassador for the State of Michigan.  He is currently working on introducing our organization to his local Sheriff and surrounding law enforcement and fire departments within the State of Michigan.  Doug's involvement with our organization shows promise and hope of spreading the good works of Shields Under Fire, Inc with other communities, towns and States.  Doug brings a lot of energy and ambition to our mission and is currently in the process of becoming a Certified Chaplain with us and would make him the first Shields Under Fire Chaplain in the State of Michigan.