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Cold Spring's Junior Firefighter Academy: Developing Tomorrow's Leaders
Unique program instills respect, promotes community involvement
by Mike Turton
 | | Students at this year's Junior Firefighter Academy got the chance to see a medevac helicopter up close |
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It was a dramatic morning in Cold Spring last Thursday, July 26, 2007. A car parked in the Village Highway Dept. yard had ignited and was engulfed in a huge fireball. Working as a team, volunteer firefighters from Cold Spring Fire Company No. 1 methodically extinguished the blaze. Then, using the "Jaws of Life" they quickly ripped the roof from the vehicle. Within minutes, more than fifty surprised onlookers watched, mesmerized as a Eurocopter BK117 medevac helicopter, dispatched from Westchester Medical Center just fourteen minutes earlier, roared into view at 145 miles per hour, circled, and with grass and dust flying, landed gently in the adjacent Mayor's Park. Pilot David Lichbach calmly got out of the helicopter, grinned broadly and waved to the fifty young faces whose eyes were glued on him and his aircraft.
The witnesses to the drama that morning were Cold Spring area students from grades four through eight. Their "school" last week was the Cold Spring Fire Department's (CSFD) fifth annual Fire Company No. 1 Junior Firefighter Academy. The car fire and the helicopter's eye-opening arrival were part of a series of planned demonstrations. For five days, volunteer instructors from Fire Company No. 1 put the young people through a vigorous program that included physical fitness workouts, lectures on fire prevention and fire fighting techniques, First Aid and CPR training, a trip to the State Fire Museum in Hudson, NY and Thursday's demonstrations. The 2007 Academy concluded with an impressive ceremony held Saturday morning at the fire station on Main Street at which Graduates marched into the hall in unison, led by the CSFD Pipe and Drum Band.
In addition to firefighting and prevention skills, the Academy teaches the kids the importance of teamwork and respect. Each participant is issued a uniform t-shirt and identification badge.
Because the program encourages volunteerism, former CSFD Chief and Academy Coordinator Danny Valentine, hopes that both the community and the fire department will benefit in the long run. "Volunteerism is declining all across the country" Valentine said. When asked why it is difficult to attract volunteers Valentine responded, "There are a lot of misconceptions about fire departments. Yet I don't know of anyone who has joined ours who hasn't really liked it" he stated.
Valentine, a full time police officer in Westchester County, knows about the impact of misconceptions. As a young boy suffering from asthma, he tried on a fire fighter's mask and panicked when he couldn't breathe. He feared that firefighters couldn't breathe while battling a fire. Any interest in becoming a firefighter vanished. When he later learned that the mask simply had not been hooked up to an air pack his attitude began to change. "Some of the older guys roped me into the fire department - and I loved it" Valentine said. He's been an active volunteer with CSFD since age 16.
The program is not only clearing up any misconceptions - it is also having a marked, positive impact on the participants. "We often get letters from parents saying how respectful their kids are after completing the Academy" says Michelle McGuire, a volunteer with the program. Her husband John is a Cold Spring firefighter and her 15-year-old son John McGuire III is now an Academy instructor after first completing the program five years ago. "I want to be a firefighter. I want to serve my community," the younger McGuire said. He likes the feel of being an instructor, even at such a young age. "The kids respect me," he said, looking very serious. Then he grinned, adding, "Plus I get to hand out the push ups - not do them!"
Twelve-year-old Kit Daponte of Cold Spring is a three-year veteran of the Academy and highly recommends it to others her age. "It's an experience most kids should have. You learn how to put out fires and how to escape from burning buildings, "she said. Daponte is also learning to handle responsibility. "I'm the Platoon Leader this year. I've never been in charge of other kids before. It's exciting," she added.
Coordinator Valentine says that some of the real life examples of the Academy's success are extremely gratifying. "Our first year, a boy who had just graduated came to his dad's aid when he choked at dinner. He knew what to do. He took charge. A girl who graduated came home from school to find smoke in the house. She took charge, alerted her family and helped get them out. She even had the presence of mind to check the door knobs for heat before opening any doors" Valentine said.
Fire Prevention Week, held each October, is an especially proud time for Academy instructors and graduates alike. CSFD volunteer firefighters teach a fire prevention program in area schools. Right there by their side, helping to instruct students, are the young graduates of the Junior Firefighter Academy.
Valentine initiated the Academy five years ago after seeing a similar program offered by a police department. "I thought it would be good for Cold Spring," he said. The first year attracted twenty participants. The program is now capped at fifty enrollees and some children have to be turned away. Valentine had high praise for the volunteers who run the program; a minimum of eight are required every day. "We usually have 10 or 12. Some volunteers even use vacation time just to be a part of it" he said. Valentine also pointed out that the Academy is free to participants and relies heavily on donations from the community.
Valentine said that when the young firefighters graduate it's a very emotional event. "We're sad to see them go," he said. Graduates clearly appreciate the program as well. Exit interviews are conducted to get their input on ideas to improve the program. "If the kids had their way," Valentine said, "the Academy would be two weeks long instead of just one."
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