Without a doubt one of the most serious challenges that we face in the volunteer fire service is retaining our firefighters and recruiting new ones. I live in a very rural, very remote part of the United States. Fortunately, my department’s retention and recruitment is very good. I have all the firefighters I need – and yet I can never stop recruiting because I cannot get behind the curve.
Most of my firefighters live in my community and work in my town. I have a robust Explorer program of youth aged 15 to 18 years old. My department is a rare exception in the world of the volunteer fire service – and I know it. I just talked to a department that had to shut down because of the lack of members. I know of departments that rely on almost every incident, upon their neighbors to respond through mutual aid. I know of departments that don’t care about recruiting the next generation – they are happy right where they are, with an aging membership.
We can’t keep doing things this way. If I have heard it once, I have heard it a hundred times about how young people just aren’t the type of people they want in their department. If that is your attitude, then start looking for someone to cover your fires. I find that my young people are every bit as able, as excited and as competent as those of us who have been here for decades – in many ways more. They are like sponges that soak up knowledge. If your attitude is bad, it rubs off on others.
People, in general, have lots of opportunities to belong to organizations – and the one that is doom and gloom is not one they want to join. People need a reason to join, and that means you have to train (and more than once a month) because to do anything different is a waste of their time. Training is so important – especially for a job that might kill you.
Finally, you have to want to know your crews. You have to include their family. You have to ask how your firefighters are doing. You have to know their kids’ names. You have to know when their birthday is and what their hobbies are. This is a family centered business – of people that love to do for others. We have jobs that we do to make a living, but this is a job we do for living.
Get out there and spread the word about how great the fire service is, and about why people should belong. If you do that, and follow some of the practices I have outlined, I think you will be successful.
Steve Hirsch is the Chair of the National Volunteer Fire Council, having served in that capacity for nearly 4 years.
Hirsch is a 25-year veteran of the Kansas State Firefighters Association executive board and has served as Secretary, First Vice Chairman, President and now Treasurer of that organization.
His home department, Sheridan County (Kansas) Fire Department, is an all-volunteer agency in the High Plains of Kansas.
The 2025 Influencers Special Edition of Fire and Safety Journal Americas is a collection of some of the most influential voices across the fire and safety industry.
Together, they provide a comprehensive overview of the latest developments, challenges, and forward-looking insights shaping the global fire and safety sector.
