Jan K. Rader was born in Ironton on June 28, 1965. She is the daughter of Robert and Mary Kay Rader.
After graduating from Ironton High School in 1983, she attended Marshall University before attending the Gemological Institute of America in Santa Monica, California, which led to an eight-year career in the jewelry industry. While working in the Washington, D.C., area Rader was introduced to the profession of firefighting.
Rader joined the Huntington Fire Department in August 1994. While serving as a firefighter, she was able to continue her education and earned a Regents Bachelor of Arts degree from Marshall University and an associate's degree in nursing from Ohio University.
Rader is the first woman to reach the rank of chief for a career department in the state of West Virginia. She came to national prominence after the release of the documentary “Heroin(e)” on Netflix in 2017. In 2018, she was chosen as one of Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people, and soon after, gave a TED Talk about saving lives during the opioid crisis.
Rader retired from the City of Huntington Fire Department in 2022 and now serves as senior advisor to the mayor, focusing on addressing homelessness, substance use disorder and severe mental illness.
