Wassaic Fire Company seeks new recruits with firehouse tour

WASSAIC — It’s that time of year again when local organizations of all shapes and sizes are on the lookout for individuals ready to help serve the community. For emergency services like the Wassaic Fire Company, the responsibilities that volunteers are asked to take on go beyond responding to calls and extinguishing fires, but with a changing population, it’s a challenge to find volunteers and members able to commit. In search of such membership, the Wassaic Fire Company held its annual open house and recruitment drive at the firehouse on Saturday, April 27.

Located at 27 Firehouse Road in Wassaic, the firehouse was open to visitors from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Company members had fire apparatus on display outside the firehouse, including a tanker, a fire engine, a utility brush truck and an older firetruck. There was also a car set up with extraction equipment to give residents a glimpse at what firefighters use in emergency situations. For younger attendees, volunteers set up a house prop with fake flames for children to extinguish with a fire hose.

Meanwhile, members of the Wassaic Rescue Squad hosted educational booths so that visitors could keep informed about fire prevention and have their blood pressure and blood sugar levels tested.

The Wassaic firehouse was open to anyone wanting a tour. Around lunchtime, members for the Wassaic Fire Auxiliary cooked hamburgers and hot dogs and served ice cream for dessert.

By the end of the open house, the fire company received four applications, including one for a future Wassaic Fire Auxiliary member, one for the Wassaic Fire Company’s Junior Firefighter Youth Program, one for a social member to assist at the company’s fundraising events and one for the fire company itself.

Although the area’s demographic has changed over time, Wassaic Fire Company Chief Mark Christiansen said the company is always looking for younger members.

“The reward is the satisfaction that you’re actually giving back to the community,” Christiansen said. “It’s a second family… the satisfaction of just helping your neighbor, your neighboring communities, that’s the reason I’ve been doing this since 1981.”

Going beyond the task of answering emergency calls, Christiansen emphasized that there’s always something for people to do for the company, whether they’re running the company’s Bingo Nights every month, organizing fundraising events or completing necessary paperwork to lessen the workload of firefighters responding to calls. As the company continues to grow in Wassaic, he said they’re attempting to be more inclusive of younger participants. The company’s Junior Firefighter Youth Program is for young adults ages 13 to 16. In the meantime, he said the company is trying to draw people back to the firehouse, which he explained used to be “the hub of the community.”

Anyone interested in joining the Wassaic Fire Company should visit the Wassaic Fire Company’s Facebook page at “Wassaic Fire Rescue ‘The Blue Crew,’” or stop by the firehouse on any Monday evening after 6 p.m. to talk with current members.