Joining a volunteer fire / ambulance company is a fantastic way to get connected with existing mutual aid systems.

Most of the United States is served by volunteer firefighters and EMTs.

When someone is having a heart attack or their house is on fire, volunteers around the community are jumping out of bed and driving to the station, getting into a jumpsuit, and responding. All for free because they believe in mutual aid and community-led response.

The number of volunteers is in extreme decline as cost of living goes up and good jobs are harder to find. Where a company used to have 35 responders to a fire call, many now will only get 2 or 3. Those same few will respond To Every Call because they know if they don’t show up, no one will. Sometimes they get sick or are out of town and that means no one responds for hours.

I won’t lie, it’s not always easy to join a volunteer company, sometimes existing volunteers can be prickly and burnt out from years of holding the line without help. Just please stick with it and they’ll soften up and become your best friends. Even if you only do it for a year or two, just get in and get connected with ways you can help.

Here’s an short list of the jobs we do. Most of us do most of these every week, but some members pick one and become an expert at that.

  • Social media poster to spread the word and help get new volunteers and donations (hi Lemmy waves)
  • photographer taking pictures of fires and volunteers to build morale
  • cook to make meals for volunteers
  • event planner to plan community outreach events
  • IT person to help us deal with our responder apps, station email, our digital records of calls, and keeping our station computers running
  • Grant writer to apply for state and federal grants for new equipment and training
  • accountant to help keep our books clean and organized
  • board member to plan the future strategic direction of the organization
  • Member fitness coordinator to put together group workouts and challenges to help keep us ready to respond
  • exterior firefighter will help with throwing ladders, staging tools, shutting off utilities, establishing water suppy, positioning the apparatus, stretching hose, and putting it all back after the scene is safe. They will stay outside of any dangerous environment and at my station can start to volunteer at 14
  • daily station cleaning, our stations require constant cleaning because of all the dirt and soot that gets dragged in
  • vehicle and equipment maintenance. Those who like to turn a wrench will find that a decently busy company has a huge backlog of broken equipment that needs maintenance or repair. You’ll get good real fast at large diesel engines, hydraulic cranes, and pumps!
  • Officers plan training, lead a crew on a scene, and ensure their crew stays safe
  • emergency scene food and water station volunteers for folks who are exhausted on a long fire call
  • emotional therapy for members. Our first responders inevitably see some very upsetting things and need a high level of emotional support. We need to be listened to and comforted by folks who will not judge us for crying it out. First responders die from suicide at extremely high rates, we need extra attention help keep us safe between calls
  • legal help as we build out a new community-funded socialized EMS group after the loss of two local hospitals because of scummy hedge funds

I really only listed the big things, there’s so many small jobs that keep a station running.

Some roles require special training that we provide for free to members:

  • EMT who drives / handles patient care and transport to closest hospital
  • Apparatus driver who learns how to operate the engine pump and aerial tower controls at a building fire
  • Hazardous materials responder who deals with any kind of dangerous chemicals, gasses, liquids, and oh god I hope not radiation
  • Rescue responder who helps find lost victims or extract trapped victims from cars and buildings
  • Rescue dog handler who fosters a rescue dog for finding victims and doing fire scene investigations
  • interior firefighter who responds into a building to rescue victims and get water on the fire before it gets out of control

Many will offer free training and certifications in Firefighter 1 and EMT through state grants.

You don’t have to live right next to the station to join! One of my friends lives in coastal NJ but is a high-level active member about 45 minutes away in Pennsylvania. Maybe twice a week she leaves work and spends the night at her station in a private bunkroom. She showers at the station, eats dinner there, works out at their gym, hangs out playing XBox in their lounge, maybe does 15 minutes of chores, then gets up and heads to work the next morning. If there’s a call while she’s there, she is one of the first on the apparatus. For someone single it’s a great way to feel connected with a larger group, not have to worry about dinner, and just get away from normal life.

Another friend of mine has done one shift like that every week for 30 years. He only ever does ambulance, and only from 6pm to 6am once a week.

Another friend, she’s our social media queen. She’s a full interior firefighter and EMT, but because of health reasons hasn’t been doing much emergency response. That’s ok! She helps so much with planning events, reaching out to the community, growing a social media following, sitting on the board of directors, and generally building morale with the membership. She is a heavy recruiter who’s been instrumental at getting new members into the organization!

So if you’re interested and live near Philadelphia, come join Swarthmore Fire & Protective Association! SFPA We’re a fun crew and would love to have you join us!

Or more likely you’ve got a station near you, join them! If you join a station and they don’t vibe with you, keep looking around! Maybe you’ll need to find one a little farther away that fits you better. That is totally fine, most folks I know have volunteered at a few stations until they find one that is a good fit.

It’s better to shop around a little and find the right place than stop coming out entirely.

As a solarpunk, I feel like volunteer mutual aid is a critical component of a healthy community. While there’s been a few rough patches getting fully plugged in, now three years into my volunteering journey it has changed my life for the better. I might not always be the top responder, but I absolutely love feeling like I’m helping hold together the fraying fabric of our society. The other day I responded to my friend’s house for a fire call, and it was a powerful moment as he and his kids stood on the lawn while I went inside with my gear. All the challenging training, the putting up with prickly members in the early days, and the moments of self doubt were worth it because in that moment I was there and ready to help my friend at a time of extreme need.

The volunteer emergency response community really desperately needs your help. Even in the best communities with a healthy membership there’s always more to do.

Join your local mutual aid group today!

If you’ve got questions AMA! I’ll always respond to this post as long as I see it, so feel free to ask a question and I’ll try to answer it best I can.