April is National Volunteer month and I am posting as a member of the Chester Volunteer Fire Company in the hopes it might inspire some of my fellow Chester residents to consider becoming a volunteer firefighter.

I could make a list of reasons why you might want to volunteer but for me the reason I did it was to simply help. I have always lived by the thought that many hands make light work and volunteering is just that simple. As a volunteer firefighter you will find you are instantly part of a family that when the chips are down they roll up their sleeves and get to work together to make that fire or car accident go easy for everyone. When the sirens goes off the feeling you get knowing your fellow firefighters are all pulling in the same direction is incredible.

We dont seek praise, we dont look for attention so for us a month set aside as a National month to highlight what we do is nice but certainly not needed after all volunteers are where it all started in America!! There are some fire companies that are older than this great nation, its in our DNA as Americans but it has been eroded in a modern world, the word volunteer is foreign to many, some will ask whats in it for me? My answer is nothing,there is nothing in it for you but satisfaction and a feeling of self worth. Volunteer fire departments are shrinking and in some states are folding completely,I like to believe that here in Chester we are far far away from that and that there is a group of people waiting in the wings to take the baton and run by becoming a Chester Volunteer firefighter. Come see us on Wednesdays from 7-9 PM or Sundays from 9-11 AM and see what we do and how you can take the next great step in your life !!!