Waynesboro fire volunteers discuss future

June 24--WAYNESBORO -- A strong, dedicated corps of volunteers has allowed Waynesboro's volunteer firefighters to provide quality service to residents of the community.

Unfortunately, that current tight-knit group is a rare breed and volunteerism at fire departments has dwindled from what it was.

"I remember a time where you had to fight to push people out of the way to get on a fire truck," said Craig Myers, a full-time driver for the Waynesboro Volunteer Fire Department.

Everyone that gathered in the social hall Tuesday night at the South Potomac fire station would likely agree that those days are over.

Government officials from the Borough of Waynesboro, the townships of Washington and Quincy, as well as representatives from Waynesboro and Washington Township police departments, Medic 2 and Waynesboro Ambulance Squad, and Blue Ridge Fire & Rescue kicked ideas around for the better part of two hours to grow volunteerism and funding for the future.

"The cost of equipment and training keeps going up," said Rusty Waltz, president of the Waynesboro Volunteer Fire Department, who invited the group of about 30 who attended the meeting. "When I sat down and started putting things together, our 10-year plan doesn't look good. We have to agree here that there are issues that need to be resolved."

Waltz specifically pointed out that costs related to fire equipment typically have increased about three percent each year and if that trend continues, funding streams will also need to go up at least three percent yearly.

"I don't think we will leave here with answers tonight, but I did want to set the tone for some dialogue," Waltz added. "I just felt like I had to do something to get a conversation started."

*** Volunteerism ***

The cost as well as the amount of training required to become a volunteer firefighter has risen. The general consensus of firefighters agreed Tuesday night that its become a challenge for volunteers with full-time jobs and families to meet the cost and requirements.

Waltz believes that the difficulty of finding volunteers has forced the department to drop its standards during its onboarding process.

Robert Doverspike, a career firefighter and paramedic, countered, "if you are saying that 20 years ago somebody wasn't good enough to do the job, why are you lowering your standards to let that person in? We want quality people and the quality people are the ones that stick around. The ones that aren't meant to do this spend about a month here and leave. We shouldn't be lowering our standards just to fill spaces."

Myers put a different spin on the quality of volunteers walking through the door.

"Sometimes you will see someone walk through that door that you know isn't going to be a fireman, but you know what, they may end up being the best treasurer you are ever going to have or they might be the best person to lead fundraisers. They came because they wanted to help."

Waynesboro's Relief Association is a charitable organization that was formed to offer financial protection and safety to volunteer firefighters and to encourage people to participate in volunteer fire service. The association helps to offset costs associated with volunteers joining and sustaining at the fire department.

Tyler Shank, a volunteer fireman, believes that incentives are the key to attracting young people to fire service.

He recalled his first days as a volunteer fireman where he played Xbox at the Mont Alto Volunteer Fire Department every Friday night.

"That was something they offered that attracted us, gave us a place to socialize and the few of us that hung out there are here tonight and have all stuck at different fire departments," Shank said.

Added Waltz, "the satisfaction of serving the public, that's the incentive."

According to Shank, the Franklin County Career and Technology Center is restarting a training program for high school students. It ended in 2006 due to lack of participation and funding.

"I think that it will help get younger folks back into fire service which will help with volunteers," Shank said.

*** Fundraising ***

Earlier this year, the Waynesboro Volunteer Fire Department purchased a ladder truck that cost more than $900,000.

According to Waltz, the fire department does not get direct payments from constituents and he believes that the department may need to come up with other funding streams in addition to volunteer fundraising to support rising costs.

One idea that came up was closing down the Virginia Avenue fire station (Mechanics Steam & Fire Hose Co.) which currently houses one engine and a brush truck.

Some costs associated with the Virginia Avenue fire station are covered by the Borough of Waynesboro, which also handles the maintenance, insurance and fuel for all fire apparatus in the borough. According to Jason Stains, Waynesboro's borough manager, the borough has budgeted $359,820 for the fire department in 2017.

Waltz said that $60,000 of volunteers monies is budgeted for yearly costs for the Virginia Avenue fire station.

The yearly payment for the new ladder truck purchase is roughly $45,000 per year.

"The total cost of running the building, personnel, maintenance... it's not cheap to run a fire department," Waltz said.

Shank said that savings on shutting down the station could go back into the general account and go a long way into paying down the ladder truck and other costs.

"The three years I have been here I could probably count on one hand how many times the truck has rolled out of that station with more than three people on it. There are a few people that live out on that end of the municipality, but if you want to talk about where most of our operation revolves around, our downtown station is where it is at," Myers said.

"That truck rolls out driver only and it doesn't provide any manpower. Historically speaking, the engine that comes out of the station down there comes out with one person because the volunteerism just isn't there."

No decisions were made on the future of the Virginia Avenue fire station.

Contact Dustin Haluska at [email protected], 717-762-2151 or on Twitter: @dhaluska

___

(c)2017 The Record Herald, Waynesboro, Pa.

Visit The Record Herald, Waynesboro, Pa. at www.therecordherald.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.