'Some of us just grow into it'

May 28—BREMEN — Calls that can come in at any hour, no pay (only a tax break on mileage), long hours that can swallow an entire weekend, and — oh — did we mention danger? In an air-conditioned age of cherished free time and always-on entertainment, enticing the next generation of younger residents to sign up for all the hazards of volunteer fire service isn't exactly an easy sell.

For the volunteer fire department at Cold Springs, that's where the junior firefighter program comes in. Beginning in middle school and continuing until the age of 18, kids in the department's service area can join as junior volunteers, learning the ropes of emergency response while remaining a safe distance from the center of the action.

That's just what Cold Springs junior Alex Curd is doing now. The son of Cold Springs volunteers Larry and Kristi Curd, Alex has been tagging along "since I was 15 or 16" — neither he or his parents can quite remember — to provide backup support while the adult volunteers tackle fires, wrecks, downed trees, and whatever else misfortune throws at the department's 44 square-mile coverage area.

The fact no one can recall Alex's precise age on joining up as a junior volunteer highlights just how integral the department's members regard their own roles in the community. Many of the department's younger adults — people like 19 year-old Cameron Williams and six-year volunteer Hayden Ham — grew up alongside parents and family friends who themselves have long been a part of local response effort.

Hayden himself has a six year-old son, Griffin, who's already showing early signs he's bound to one day follow in his dad's footsteps. "He comes to the meetings; he'll have his little turnout gear; he has his boots," says Shelly Williams, Cameron's mom and longtime medical and fire volunteer. "He's already into all of it.

"Our [department's] articles of incorporation are from 1976, I think, and it's funny how generational it is," she adds. Waving a hand across the table at Hayden, Shelly files through her deep bank of Cold Springs memories.

"His dad was part of this department before he grew into it," she says, as Hayden nods his agreement in the background. "If you've ever seen that [meme about] the frazzled mom who has the toddlers, where she finally gets them corralled for a picture...that's pretty much us! A lot of us had relatives or parents who already had volunteered before us. Some of us just grow into it."

"When I joined at 25, I was the youngest one here," adds Hayden. "For a lot of people, it'll start that way: You're already somebody's kid, so it just comes naturally."

As you might expect, junior volunteers aren't thrown into the heat of battle — whether it's a battle against fire, traffic, extricating crash victims from cars, or anything else that carries a training requirement or the potential for liability. But, as volunteer (and Shelly's husband) Darrell Williams explains, they do learn on the job.

"We'll take a junior, or a new fire fighter out to a scene," he says. "But the first time, they just watch. Then the second time, they start to help. We'll teach them how to fill the tanker — they're not driving it, mind you, but they are starting to learn how it all works. Time passes, and they get more and more involved. But it's a while yet before they'll ever be put in a more responsible situation than that."

Junior volunteers, of course, can't pilot equipment; the department requires volunteers to be at least 21 years of age even to drive their first truck. But the program allows them to get their feet wet on the ground, while giving them a still-vital role to play in supporting those who are closer to the action.

Once he'd gotten a firsthand taste of his parents' volunteer activity, Cameron Williams, Shelly and Darrell's son, knew it wouldn't be long before he'd be volunteering by their side as an adult — a bit of family forecasting that's since come true. "My training was at a brush fire back here on one of these county roads," he recalls. "That's when I knew I wanted to join the fire department."

"Our juniors, if we can keep them interested, are a big part of our department continuing into the future," says Shelly. "Cameron and Alex were already good friends, so if one of them started coming to the meetings, it just made sense that eventually the other one would, too."

Even when it comes to answering an emergency call, it's hard to separate friends and family at Cold Springs. That makes it just a little easier for children or friends of current volunteers to eventually get in on the act.

"What made me join? I just got tired of sitting out in the car!" Alex jokes, revealing more than a little insight into the way the recruitment torch often passes to the next generation. "If he was gonna be riding around with me anyway, he might as well get out and help," explains Cameron. "So that's what he did."

"Plus," jokes Alex, "they do feed you. Maybe I'm just here because they feed you, and when they feed you, you shut up and do what you're told."

On the serious side, Shelly says the department welcomes interest from anyone in the Cold Springs community. It's hard and erratic work, the call responses can range from easy-fix blips to hours-long fire marathons, and there's real risk involved in putting yourself in harm's way. But, she says, it's a community-minded endeavor that no one should ever go without...even if it's tough to envision where the next generation of volunteers will come from.

"All of our meetings are open to families," she says. "We really encourage families to come and see for themselves. A lot of us have grown up in it, and those people understand it because it's what they've always known. But anyone can show interest and do it. We want that. In the long run, that's what's going to make our community stronger."