Issues that were once thought to be resolved continually confront the Sierra Vista Fire Department (SVFD). The problem was that solutions designed to resolve problems either did not work or created new problems instead. The purpose of this research project was to determine if the SVFD could evolve into a learning organization capable of improving its collective ability to solve problems with permanent solutions. Historical and action research methodologies were used to answer the following research questions: 1. What is a learning organization? 2. What characteristics or disciplines are essential for an organization to continually learn? 3.What characteristics or disciplines of a learning organization can be currently identified with the Sierra Vista Fire Department? The procedures used for this research included a review of fire service literature, city of Sierra Vista documents, textbook, periodicals, and the Internet specific to organizational learning. An informal opinion survey was designed to measure which characteristics of a learning organization currently exist within the SVFD and distributed to all full-time paid members. As a result of this research, it was determined that a learning organization is one where every member participates in the creation of an organizational future by seeking out and mastering change. It was determined that four general characteristics are found in all learning organizations: individual learning, team learning, a shared vision, and unrestricted communication throughout the organization.The survey results indicated that, while all four characteristics exist within the SVFD, marked improvement in team learning, developing a shared vision, and organizational communication must occur if the SVFD is to become a learning organization. Several recommendations were made, including developing a shared vision, improving organizational communication, training for all personnel in active listening and effective feedback skills, consideration of creating a new management position responsible for organizational learning, and quantifying the change effort.