Photo courtesy of Girdwood Fire Dept.
Longtime GVFD volunteers Capt. Carl Madson of Girdwood (rear) and Lt. Michael Campbell of Anchorage (front).
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By William Chadwick
Special to the Turnagain Times
With the introduction of Girdwood Fire Department’s new water tender last week, the sun sets on my ten year struggle to re-capitalize our fleet of firefighting and EMS vehicles. The Girdwood Fire department now has state of the art tools to safely do our job of protecting the citizens of Girdwood.
Great tools, however, do not entirely make a great fire department. That takes great people. Girdwood has always been a unique community when it comes to volunteer efforts and neighbors helping neighbors. I cannot praise highly enough the men and women of our department who perform the selfless, thankless and physically demanding tasks we are called upon to perform.
On far too many occasions this summer, they have been called upon to mend traumas and deal with the broken bodies in the seemingly never ending carnage on the Seward Highway. We have watched one neighbor’s duplex burn to the ground for lack of a water hydrant and a timely dispatch, consoling ourselves with the fact that the fire did not spread to the adjoining houses or escape up the side of the mountain. I am thankful to have a jewel of a resource in Chaplain Jim Doepkin to deal with the mental and spiritual aspects of our work.
Recruitment and retention of membership is one of the most significant challenges faced by volunteer departments across the state and the country. The problem is most acute here in Girdwood with experienced personnel. These personnel. Our most experienced volunteers are frequently hired by the Anchorage Fire Department and other professional agencies. While it is fairly easy to replace and train new recruits, the loss of captains and officers is devastating because the experience they have gained over the years is not something that can be replicated by training easily replaced. In a sense, we are the municipalities “B” team.
The demographics of our community are changing rapidly. As the resort grows and property values climb, fewer Girdwood residents can make the time commitment to volunteer with our department. As such, we opened our membership to residents of Anchorage and the surrounding area.. Members living outside of the Girdwood Valley must maintain the same training and call shift requirements that are required of local members. This program has only been limited by the lack of sleeping facilities at the Girdwood Fire Station. I have recently applied for a federal “stimulus money” grant to add sleeping quarters to the station.
With our community profile, most of our members are young and with the advantage of the training we offer, are learning job skills that can be applied beyond their volunteer service with Girdwood. With our rapid turnover rate, we are constantly.
We are always seeking new recruits to serve the community. Currently we are starting a basic EMT class open to members of the community interested in becoming members. The class starts Sept. 9 and will run till Nov. 16. The cost is $500 for non-members (about half what the same class would cost at UAA) Contact Assistant EMS Chief Terry Kadel at 783-2511 for details.
In addition Girdwood offers members local training opportunities for Firefighter I and II, as well as advanced level EMS classes, Hazmat, Safety and fire prevention. Members in good standing qualify to attend the National Fire Academy in Emmetsburg, Maryland at no cost.
I would also like to invite any other members of the community to consider joining the department. Meeting are held weekly at the Girdwood Fire Hall on Tuesday nights at 7:00pm. Come by, meet our personal and sign up. I would especially like to invite any older members of the community with medical, driving and heavy equipment skills that would like to apply them to driving and operating the trucks and other apparatus. You don’t have to run into burning buildings to be a contributing member. The most important factor is a commitment to serving the community.
The Girdwood Fire Department meets every Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. for and alternates nights for Fire, Rescue, and EMS training. Additional training is offered on other nights and weekends. Application packages are available online at www.girdwoodfire.com.
William Chadwick is the Girdwood Volunteer Fire Department Chief.
