Long Time Leader: Doc Moltrup

My Story:

PGFD Division Chief Donald "Doc" Moltrup

I first became interested in the fire service when I was three or four years old. We had a very good family friend near our home town of Beaver Falls, PA, who was the Chief of the Chippewa Township (PA) Volunteer Fire Department. We visited them often and I also looked forward to going to the fire station with him.

He also gave me all of his old issues of “Fireman” magazine, then the official magazine of the NFPA (and probably the only real fire service journal in that era). I poured through these magazines and even traced pictures of fire apparatus in advertisements in them and made up my own fictitious fire department with them.

Although my Dad was never in the fire service, he was kind of a fire buff so I went to fires with him often. I lived in State College (PA) for several of my pre-school years and a volunteer with the Alpha Fire Company in State College lived across from our house. I always saw him rushing off to fire calls and wished I could go too.

We call it brotherhood

Photo by Tom Suddath the DCFD band photographer

I stumbled upon this post via Facebook and was enthralled as the author shared the story of a bus ride that stretched from jubilation to sadness and every point in between Washington DC and New York, NY.

The author is a DCFD firefighter who, like most of us, enjoys other passions in his life. His are cycling, music and beer. Doesn’t make him a bad guy, does it? LOL

I won’t ruin the story for you but I just had to share this gem of a quote I found within it that reinforces my theory on the importance of storytelling in the fire service:

From the Halls of Hyattsville

Nik and Nick (practically twins) - two bunk-ins at Hyattsville Volunteers

It may be a while before I have a chance to share all of the great stories and experiences I heard this weekend during my awesome bunk-in tour-of-duty with Hyattsville Volunteers but I didn’t want to delay in showing you the photos.

While we didn’t catch any real work, I still had a blast and gained a real education on and appreciation for bunk-in programs — especially theirs.

I also had the opportunity to tour College Park Volunteer Fire Department — a class act and great fire-dorm set-up — courtesy of Capt. Matt Machala who is rightly very proud of their program.

All of these young people are pretty impressive.

So until I can find the time to get to the real story, here are some photos — to paint a thousand words.

• Hyattsville Volunteers on Flickr
• College Park VFD on Flickr

Related:

• Living it up Like a Live-In
• Is this the Ultimate Bunk-In Program?
• Can You Afford to Live Without a Live-in?
• FDLiveIn.com
• www.hvfd.com
• www.cpvfd.org

How I met Billy D. Hayes … and stuff

This story of how I met Billy D. Hayes (and several other great people) was told when Billy called in during the Firefighter Storytellers Internet Radio Show with special guest Janet Wilmoth on February 9, 2011. It was originally printed  in “The Volunteer Firefighter” magazine from www.fasny.com –  August- 2008

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This article is one in a series of toolkits focusing on recruitment, retention, fire service marketing and leadership.

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My best friend: Chief Dennis Allen

Last month I said we’d take the summer off from talking about clearinghouses and trench work to focus on some other aspects of the fire service as they relate to recruitment and retention.

So, I decided we’d talk about an often mentioned but rarely explored principle of the fire service: Brotherhood. For the purposes of this article, the term “brotherhood” is gender-generic, so I hope the feminist revolution doesn’t show up at my doorstep any time soon.

Already you might be asking yourself what brotherhood has to do with recruitment and retention. But think about it. What is one of the greatest if not somewhat intangible assets we have to offer someone thinking about joining our ranks? That’s right; it’s the real brotherhood of the fire service.

Storytellers: Janet Wilmoth

Fire Chief Magazine "Editor-in-Chief" Janet Wilmoth

Janet Wilmoth isn’t just a Run-to-the-Curb Kid, she’s the one who I credit with planting a seed in my mind as to the importance of storytelling in the fire service.

This Wednesday night — February 9th, she gets to tell her side of the story.

Click here for the details of: Not Just a Daddy’s Girl! and listen in to Firefighter Storytellers on the FirefighterNetcast Radio Network.

Stop back on Wednesday night at 9pm and you can listen to the show here.

Fire Nerd: Pat Coghlan

Pat Coghlan reflects on the propane explosion that occurred on December 27, 1983 in downtown Buffalo - claiming the lives of five Buffalo Firefighters

Meet retired Lt. Patrick Coghlan from the Buffalo Fire Department, a 34-year veteran of the fire service. Like many firefighters, Patty, as his friends refer to him, is a real character with a bit of a crusty exterior — but when you peel that away — you find a big guy with an even bigger heart and a very special fondness for telling stories and preserving the rich history of the fire service.

A self-proclaimed “nerd” for the fire service (a real “two-hander” as he says), Pat is the Vice President of the Buffalo Fire Historical Society and a hoarder of fire memorabilia. A buff’s buff, Pat has passed down his love for the fire service to his daughter Margaret, the museum’s secretary.

Pat Coghlan is the son of a Buffalo firefighter and a nurse. Like me, he kept a journal of the calls he responded to – except his log starts even before he was a firefighter, chronicling fires and calls that he buffed and took photos at. He buffed 210 runs in 1964 alone.

Appointed to the Buffalo Fire Department in October 1965, his class was the last class appointed for the creation of a new company: Ladder 16. Fresh out of the academy, Pat was first assigned at Ladder 3 on Spring Street where he served as a tiller man. He served as the driver for Chief Harvey Supple from 1969 to 1976. From there he went to Engine 21 and was appointed lieutenant in 1978.

Citizen-Soldier-Firefighter: Dan Frontera

Here’s the link to Dan’s show that aired November 10, 2010 titled: “The Story of a True Serviceman“

Soldier Dan Frontera in Iraq

Dan Frontera grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, NY in a family where service was a way of life.  His father was a Veteran along with most of his uncles. His Dad and one uncle were both volunteer firemen.

 

 So, it’s no surprise that Dan would follow his family’s example of service and grow up to be both a soldier and a firefighter.  Soon after seeing the National Guard in action supporting his community during a blizzard in Buffalo and while still a senior in high school, Dan enlisted in the Army National Guard as a Medic. 

The Story of a True Serviceman

Dan Frontera grew up in the suburbs of Buffalo, NY in a family where community service was simply a way of life. His Dad was a Veteran along with most of his uncles. Both his Dad and one of his uncles were volunteer firemen too.

Dan grew up to be both a soldier and a firefighter. Tune in to Firefighter Storytellers at 9pm EST on Thursday-November 11, 2010 to hear Dan’s story as he and Tiger Schmittendorf celebrate the contributions of all service men and women in a special Veterans Day tribute.

Listen in, call in, download and follow Dan on his journey from Run-to-the-Curb kid to “Citizen. Soldier. Firefighter.”

Help us promote Firefighter Storytellers and the FirefighterNetcast family of shows by downloading and sharing the show flyer.

Chasing Fire: Nick Martin

By: Nicholas Martin – for www.runtothecurb.com
Firefighter – Washington DC Fire & EMS and Run-to-the-Curb type kid

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Download, Print and Distribute the Complete Story:
Run To The Curb-NickMartin

I started as a volunteer when I was 14 years old in my hometown of Swarthmore, PA (just outside Philadelphia).  My older brother was a volunteer and I used to hang-out at the firehouse all the time from when I was as young as I can remember. Before I could even join, I used to run up to the firehouse to open the doors when they got a run.  We lived minutes from the city and my Dad would take me into Philly on the weekends to buff fires.

A few years before I joined, my older brother left the house to respond to an apartment fire at 52 South Morton Road.  From listening on my crystal-based scanner I could tell it was a “good” fire.  My mother was curious too and she came to my room to see what was going on.  Learning it was a serious fire, she drove us to watch the fire (and check-up on my brother).  

RttC Kid: Nick Martin

Nick Martin, Firefighter and Run-to-the-Curb Kid

Nick Martin has served as a career/volunteer firefighter in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia; and currently serves in the District of Columbia.

He is a frequent presenter and trainer with www.tradtionstraining.com and is an author of articles dedicated to making us better and safer at what we do. 

Join Nick and Tiger on Firefighter Storytellers on the FirefighterNetcast.com Radio Network at 9pm on Thursday-October 14, 2010.

And check back soon after the show for Nick Martin’s complete story aptly titled: “Chasing Fire.”