Hey,
This Secret List edition is not meant to be overly funny or offensive so save your emails-this is about something that EVERY fire department needs: funding from their community.
Really.
Perhaps by now you have read about the fire company in Pennsylvania that hosts “naughty” bingo. Instead of traditional prizes, the winners win adult toys…and people are traveling for miles around to play!
The Hometown Volunteer Fire Company in Schuylkill County is getting ready to host its second adults-only naughty bingo night. The first event last year drew a standing-room crowd with people from several surrounding counties and even New Jersey. Hometown is a little village in Rush Township, about 70 miles northeast of Harrisburg.
The next naughty bingo night is March 11-mark your calendars. The fire company is selling just 160 tickets at $20 each-so hurry up. Naturally, people tire of the same old fundraisers, which typically rely on the same people to spend money. This event is designed to raise money from a larger, more diverse and fun crowd.
WHY? Because in so many areas, fire companies and volunteer fire departments and EMS squads must WORK to raise money in order to earn the right to provide service. In so many cases, the local board of elected folks makes a “donation” to the fire company, but in thousands of cases, the same people who wake up at 3 in the morning to answer a call must also wake up early Saturday morning to run their annual carnival, their BBQ, their boot drive…whatever it takes to raise money.
There is NO tax base.
None.
Best so called bargain in local government and it’s been abused.
It’s 2017 and while we have written about this before, some communities continue to, quite frankly, take advantage of their volunteer Firefighters and EMT’s who provide service ..while also being required to raise the money to do so!
Lets try this;
Ask the police officers to raise money, off duty, for their new cars.
Ask the park dept employees to BBQ chickens to pay for that new ball field.
Ask the public works folks do a BBQ beef roast to buy the needed snow plow.
Ask the city manager to do a boot drive to build a new office.
Ask the firefighters to run a BINGO game to buy a new pumper.
Only one of the above is reality. The others would laugh in our faces…and rightfully so.
While decades ago it may have been “the way” business was conducted in providing fire and rescue services, these aren’t “those” days anymore. Times were simpler and people had time, back in the day. It’s a different world today with higher costs, unheard of liability, new standards and rules. It is simply impossible to expect volunteers who already have little time, to raise their own funds to buy equipment so that they can work for free.
The North American volunteer fire and rescue service, for the most part, is in deep trouble. Simply turn on a scanner or listen to an app and you will hear many well meaning volunteer fire and EMS agencies being toned out over and over with very limited-and sometimes no response.
One of the biggest challenges volunteer leaders have is getting people to be involved-and while there are a variety of reasons for slow or no turnout, or low interest or enthusiasm, one solution is that the taxpayers under local community elected leaders, need to belly up and pay for the services, so that the volunteers don’t have to raise their own funds.
The volunteers in Hometown, PA have a unique idea and it’s working to raise some very needed – but still very limited funds. And while we commend the Hometown volunteers for providing old bedroom favorites to the latest innovations, we have to wonder how many are required in order to purchase that needed $500,000 pumper? Er, uh engine.
Here is some NOT SO NAUGHTY video about the volunteer fire fundraising situation:
http://tinyurl.com/gusj8f3
Raise money on your own time to buy equipment so that you (volunteer firefighters and EMT’s) can work for free?
At some point soon, that idea will run out of batteries and no longer satisfy the need.
(sorry)
Take Care. Be Careful. Pass it On.
BillyG
The Secret List 2/9/2017-1100 Hours
www.FireFighterCloseCalls.com
