ARBALA — After reading about hopeful graduating seniors from the class of 2020 wanting to join the fire service, Arbala Volunteer Fire Department’s Chief Brian Fairchild wanted to make sure area teens know grants are available for schooling, he said.
Arbala VFD accepts teens as young as 16 years of age with a parent’s permission to volunteer at the station, although teens may not be able to do every job older volunteers are able to do, Fairchild said.
Although all area VFDs struggle to get grants for equipment and vehicles, “Educational grants are easier, and we’ve been successful so far,” Fairchild said. Arbala VFD has sent seven young volunteers to fire service training on educational grants, and now those graduates are employed full or part-time in area fire departments, Fairchild said.
The funding amounts to approximately $1,900, Fairchild said. But the benefit is not just to the individual.
“It helps us out too, because we can get them out here and have more help when we run calls, be a part of our department and our community,” Fairchild said.
“Some people might say, ‘Well, they’re going to volunteer for a while, then they’re going to get their education and get hired on at a job and leave.’ My response is, ‘That’s good!’” Fairchild said.
To Fairchild and the rest of the Arbala VFD, the mission of the VFD should be to assist those in the community and lift up Hopkins County citizens through economics and education, Fairchild said.
Those interested in obtaining a grant to attend fire service training can find Arbala VFD on Facebook.