The Firemen’s Association of the State of New York has been awarded a $1.7 million federal grant to recruit new volunteer firefighters. The four-year Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant is awarded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The funding will be used to create statewide outreach campaigns, awareness programs, and recruitment and retention activities.
“Volunteer firefighters and EMTs are a vital part of keeping New Yorkers safe. Increased call volumes and the current pandemic have strained our emergency services, and this grant will go a long way in boosting our ranks,” said FASNY President John P. Farrell, Jr. “This commitment from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security speaks volumes about the importance of expanding our volunteer departments to protect our communities day in and day out,” added President Farrell.
Currently, there are almost 1,800 volunteer fire departments in New York, staffed by approximately 85,000 volunteer firefighters. With an increasingly complex mission and growing call volumes, more volunteers are needed to ensure timely and adequate response in the communities they serve.
Volunteers provide 80 to 85 percent of the fire and emergency response in New York State. Recruiting and retaining volunteers is a complex problem. Economic and societal factors continue to present challenges to every volunteer department. Especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many departments have had difficulty in attracting new members. The goal of the FASNY recruitment campaign funded by this SAFER grant will be to educate the public on the important service volunteer firefighters provide in their communities and, in turn, solicit more members of the community to become volunteers.
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