The $686,000 grant will go toward increased recruitment efforts Article via KYWNewsradio PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) —Volunteer fire companies in Montgomery County are celebrating a $686,000 grant from The Federal Emergency Management Agency. The four-year grant will benefit more than 80 fire companies in the county. Its overarching goal is to increase on-site volunteers because there is currently a shortage. “We hope with this campaign …
Bolstering the Brave: Four-Year Grant Funds a Countywide Effort to Increase Volunteer Firefighter Numbers
Montgomery County is currently experiencing a dire shortage of volunteer firefighters. At a recent press event, Montgomery County Fire Chief’s Association George Wilmot cited the data that illustrate the problem. “The number of volunteer firefighters in Pennsylvania has shrunk from 300,000 in the 1970s to 38,000 in 2018,” he explained. He said that the falloff is particularly dire in Montgomery …
Montgomery County snags $686,000 grant to recruit volunteer firefighters
Outreach effort aims for 400 recruits with tagline: ‘Ordinary People. Trained for the Extraordinary. From left to right: Glen Russell, Chair of Recruitment & Retention Committee, Montgomery County Fire Chiefs Association; Ron Griffith, Abington Township Fire Department firefighter; Matt Kozeniewski, Centre Square Fire Company firefighter; George Wilmot, President of the Montgomery County Fire Chiefs Association; Mike Jones, Chief of Abington …
Montgomery County Fire Chief’s Association Launches Four-Year Campaign to Recruit Volunteer Firefighters
Though Montgomery County is the third most populous county in Pennsylvania, the critical need for volunteer firefighters mirrors the plight of the state and the country: there is a dire shortage of them. Fortunately, Montgomery County Fire Chief’s Association has a solution for this: a four-year county-wide recruitment and retention campaign designed to grow its base of volunteer firefighters. With …