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Sept 29 post on “DolanEMSProblems” by Jay Fleming
“So by requiring the ambulance EMT's to be firefighters we severely limit our volunteer pool. We may have a wealth of experienced women with a medical backgrounds out there who have no interest in being a firefighter. We'll never know unless we ask.”  FALSE Claim

We currently have 1 Female EMT volunteer in Meadview on the roster with NO fire. We had 1 volunteer Paramedic in Meadview, recruited, checked out, certs brought up to date by Chief Moore’s efforts.  NO fire.

The only job description ever given to me or anyone I know is for a firefighter EMT.  Show me one document from LMRFD that says volunteers don't need to be firefighters.

At the October 6 Focus Group presentation, Donna Wickerd indicated that $70,000 would be paid by the LMRFD to NACFD after consolidation as our % of operational costs.  She was not sure what that was for.  It would cover our cost of a Fire Chief, Battalion Chiefs, IT & Radio personnel, grant writer, Administration personnel services IE: payroll, payables, receivables, records management, an EMS Coordinator, and supplies purchasing.

Donna’s conclusion, however, indicated that the determination by the focus group is that “there would be NO benefit to either the LMRFD or NACFD by consolidating.”

$70,000, in my opinion, is considerable benefit to NACFD.  Chief Moore at one point stated it would buy NACFD a fire fighter.  All of the operational and management services that the $70,000 would purchase for the LMRFD is also considerable, easily costing the LMRFD $200,000/year to replicate.  The additional UNPAID benefit of a proven, stable structure already in place from which we can continue to grow our fire & EMS services, and a GOOD reputation with vendors and lending institutions is incalculable.

Donna Wickerd’s statement in her presentation that “there would be no hope of any volunteer program going forward after consolidation” because of NACFD’s “policy against a volunteer program”, is disingenuous.   Donna and other members of her group have been told repeatedly in several public meetings by Chief Moore that he is open to a volunteer program; he just needs people to show up to volunteer.  He has proven his sincerity in pursuing qualified volunteers.  The Paramedic volunteer he spent months putting through the background tests, updating of certs, etc. in 2014 showed up for a couple of calls before leaving the area in a hurry.  We currently have a female volunteer EMT on the roster in Meadview.

That's  because  when people call to volunteer, no one called them back over the past few years. Show me one web page that says NACFD is looking for volunteers. I'm sorry they made a bad choice in paramedics. It proves  my point we need local volunteers, Dolan and Meadview  is culture shock to outsiders. In the middle of nowhere, what do you mean they haul water?


The issue is NOT any imagined “NACFD policy against volunteers”.  It is (1) the lack of volunteers in our area stepping up, and (2) a lack of commitment by volunteers who do step up.  This is the reality of the area in which we live.  We do not have the quality or quantity of volunteers that some other areas of the country have.  To survive, we must work within that reality.  To COUNT on volunteers for any plan going forward is suicide!  To survive we must maintain a stable base of paid personnel and management which NACFD has already established and which consolidation would continue to provide.  From that stable base we can then train and utilize volunteers as they step up, and as their qualifications allow, for such things as recruiting more volunteers, pursuing annexation of Meadview’s $265,000 potential tax base into the District, organizing regular trainings for firefighters & EMS personnel, and community outreach projects, etc.

Not COUNTING on volunteers  could mean your death if no one shows up, or an ambulance or fire truck with one person. If you want the calls where one person shows up, left me know.

The ongoing disinformation being propagated by the focus group to undermine the consolidation effort brings into question their sincerity in their claim to be “neutral, with no agenda”.  Obviously not true!

Don't listen to me, do your homework, look up  fire department staffing lawsuits. Look up your chance of survival with an ambulance 45 minutes to who knows when.

Without volunteers we're in trouble.. When people know we have one ambulance sometimes, how many will visit or move here?