Russell said that six years ago, the department began taking recruitment to the next level. He said, “We offered training opportunities as an incentive for younger fire fighters. Forest has intensive, proactive, recruitment programs. We began building a network of high-energy guys six years ago. We now have about 27 guys who enjoy competition and challenges.

 In 2009, nine Forest Fire Dept. fire fighters took  a PA state certification test at Bucks County
  Public Safety Training Center   in Doylestown and all nine got certified.
From the left, front,  former Chief Mike Harnish, Foreman and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) A.J. Manzione;
standing, Captain Eric Doughty,  Chief Wayne Rosengrant,  Former Chief and currently 1^st Assistant Chief Tim Knapp,
Mike Donovan, Company President/ former Chief/Training Officer Pat Russell,
Lieutenant Greg Scigllano, and EMT/Assistant Foreman Nick Marsh.

“We are fortunate that residents donated us sites that we can use for drilling. We train hard; we train often. Our guys enjoy climbing a tower and rappelling. They practice special skills. No more sitting around on drill night.

“This year, we have had more calls [two rollover vehicle accidents and five structure fires since Jan. 1 than last year at the same time]. With calls coming in more frequently, morale is getting high because they get to apply what they learned and practiced on real calls.

“Our certifications] benefits the public and our department. I think certification gives us a more professional staff. We are eligible for more funding. We have more credibility with the public when we do our annual fund raisers. We still need to do department fundraisers, such as letter drives and Pig Roasts. The additional funding really aids us in our fire equipment needs.

“We are very proud of our fire fighters for their hard work and their achievements! Although we are a 100-percent volunteer company, we are gratified that some residents recognize our professional fire fighting skills by complementing us. We look forward to continuing to prove ourselves at every fire and providing that high level of professionalism the public now expects from us.

Russell said, “Hard training helped put those volunteers on the cutting edge of advanced fire-fighting skills. We invite any and all interested in joining our company to contact us for more information. Visit us on the web at www.forestfirerescue.com.