Here’s a college volunteer opportunity: Saving Lives

I was sitting at my desk doing homework for class the next day, when all of a sudden, the pager buzzed and beeped, and a voice came over the radio announcing, “Residential structure fire.”

I rushed out of the house to the firehouse lugging my gear and mentally preparing for every possible scenario. When I arrived, fire was blowing out of a second-floor back bedroom with heavy smoke. A fellow firefighter, John, and I pushed in the door and climbed the steps into the intense heat and thick smoke. I opened the bedroom door and saw the majority of the fire around the corner, so I put it out with the hose. It was a frigid winter day, and my gear was frozen from the water, but I was proud that we were able to keep the fire to only one room of the house.

College students can be involved as local first responders while still receiving their education and get valuable training and experiences that last a lifetime. However, very few do. According to Sam Walters, an emergency services researcher from Towson University, only a small number, 25.7%, of college students volunteer. This number shows the percentage of students who do any type of volunteer work, not specifically serving as first responders. And young people are needed. According to the National Fire Protection Association, 65% of firefighters are volunteers.

I am a volunteer firefighter with Sweet Valley Fire Rescue, a small-town volunteer fire department with an EMS station, located roughly 20 minutes away from campus. Being a volunteer can be stressful and demanding at times, most certainly, but the smiles of people who come up and thank you for the hard work after a call, or offer a friendly, encouraging chat during a station fundraising event is truly what it’s all about. Volunteering has taught me so many new things that I can apply to my life every day no matter where I am. There’s never been a day when I have regretted volunteering instead of playing sports or being in a club. It gives such a different, new and amazing perspective on life that I may not get through participation in any other activity. I would tell anyone, in college or not, if they are looking for community service or just something fun to do, to join their local volunteer fire department or EMS service. It is the most rewarding thing: it helps the people in the community to live their best lives.

Fire and EMS personnel are stretched thinner than they ever have been in years. The increase in fundraising needs as well as the increase in calls has driven away many of the volunteers who have been in the fire and EMS business. This decrease also comes from the lack of young people joining these volunteer departments.

One common barrier that college students have to volunteering are that they simply do not have enough time outside of their studies and other extracurricular activities. Additionally, a lack of knowledge about the availability of community volunteering opportunities may also have a severe negative impact on the number of students who volunteer.

For example, Back Mountain Regional Fire Rescue and Medic 30 are both housed at a station not even five minutes from campus. Back Mountain Regional has a program offered to Misericordia students to volunteer either as a firefighter or EMS personnel. They offer training that will not only help with fire and EMS work but also with real-world skills that students might not have thought about. The experience will also give great socialization to anyone who joins because it offers a second family.

If fire and EMS aren’t for you, there are many fundraisers that help combat the rising costs of fuel, maintenance, and other expenses. Other local departments like Harvey’s Lake, Sweet Valley, and Shavertown, just to name a few, are looking for volunteers to help, whether on calls or at fundraisers.

This is only volunteer work, and it is possible to do. Not every moment needs to be spent helping at the fire station. Studies can still be performed, and college life can still happen, but this type of activity can make a real, positive, even lifesaving difference in communities. Volunteers can also make a difference in their resumes. Employers will see volunteer work on a resume and pick that application over others during the hiring process.

The number of volunteers is dwindling lower every year to the point that fire and EMS services are closing due to the lack of personnel. A report from “The Feasibility of Regionalizing Pennsylvania’s Volunteer Fire Companies” shows that the number of active firefighters in Pennsylvania declined from an estimated 300,000 in 1976 to 152,000 in 1985 and to 72,000 today, a loss during the period of about 8,000 volunteers annually. All over the United States, volunteer fire and EMS services are closing their doors and leaving towns without fire departments or ambulance services for two simple reasons: not have the funding, and not have the personnel to run on calls and do the fundraising.

When towns are left without a fire or ambulance service, residents may wait an extra 15 or more minutes for the next due station. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, structure fires today can go from a small flame to a fully involved fire in three to five minutes, and those suffering a heart attack have a 90% survival rate if their receive treatment within the first minutes of a cardiac arrest, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Sudden cardiac arrest can be fatal if it lasts longer than eight minutes without CPR. Having volunteers is crucial to “save lives and protect property,” which is the motto of the fire service.

Imagine your parents’ home caught fire in the middle of the night as your parents slept with your puppy by their side. Would you want emergency responders to be late? Should you leave the life-saving work to someone else? Be a volunteer. Join your local fire or ambulance today.