Sitting with me in the Firehouse is Mike Nelson, a paramedic, former airline pilot, flight instructor, and founder of Ladder Suite, a modern software platform built specifically for first responders. Mike’s career in emergency services began in volunteer EMS, where seeing the direct impact of helping people inspired him to pursue the field professionally. He earned his EMT certification, advanced to EMT-CC, and ultimately became a paramedic, serving both professionally and as a volunteer medic with his local fire department. Alongside his EMS career, Mike also built a successful career in aviation, flying the CRJ-700 for American Eagle while working as a flight instructor. After starting a family, he made the decision to step away from airline flying to be more present at home and return to EMS full time. A father of two, Mike credits parenthood — especially raising his autistic son Logan, who has high support needs — with reshaping how he views time, stress, service, and balance. A lifelong passion for technology and coding eventually led Mike to create Ladder Suite, combining his firsthand experience in emergency services with software development. What began as a real-time situational awareness app has grown into a full suite of tools supporting firefighters, medics, and agencies nationwide with dispatching, reporting, and operational support. Today, Ladder Suite continues to grow as a mission-driven platform staffed by firefighters, medics, and military veterans — all focused on helping first responders work safer, faster, and better informed.
