Lancaster County first responders want greater collaboration with their communities and school districts to grow the ranks of young recruits and address declining membership at local fire departments and police stations.
East Hempfield Township fire Chief John Kottmyer told a panel of state legislators during a Senate Democratic Policy Committee hearing in West Earl Township on Wednesday that recruitment tactics haven’t changed much since he began volunteering decades ago. Strategies need to modernize to attract younger people, he said, as membership numbers dwindle.
“It’s kind of a different era, a different time, and I think we need to look at some of the ways that we’re thinking about recruitment or retention,” Kottmyer said. “How do we keep these people?”
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