If There Is No Mandate For Fire Protection Then Why Do We Have It?
There is no constitutional mandate for police of fire protection in the commonwealth, then why do we have it? Why don’t we just disband the fire companies, both paid and volunteer the same way police departments are being disbanded?

Well then, why don’t they get the support and recognition that the volunteer fire company’s volunteers deserve? They, each volunteer, has to pay for their own equipment that they need to perform their duties to serve and protect and yet they do it day in and day out with out pay or compensation.

How about when your fire company goes out to perform what is called a public service, pumping out a basement that has been flooded, or removing the snow for a roof to prevent it for collapse after a heavy snow fall after all its not a fire and you could have called a plumber or hired a few people to remove your snow. The fire equipment that is involved in the public service is not compensated for in anyway. Suppose you were billed say $150.00 per hour for this service then whom would you call? Yet, the volunteers respond to the call day after day, week after week with out putting their hand out for pay or compensation.

You see the fire police standing traffic post at accidents and fires, also crowd control at fairs, parades and other events that your local elected constables charge and get paid for.

Then time has come for these and all volunteers to be recognized by the commonwealth with a form of pension after 20 years of service to the people that they serve and protect. If this were a paid service, the cost would be something like $100,000.00 per man per year, but these brave men and women give of their time over and over with out pay or compensation, don’t you think it’s time the tax payers money get used for something other then tourism?

Wouldn’t it make sense for the commonwealth to create a pension fund for the volunteers to thank them for their services after a 20-year period?

Even if it would be a $100.00 per month, it would be a way of saying thank you for your service, job well done.

Contact your elected officials and tell them what you think, and what you want them to do. You elected them and you can vote them out, after all, they work for you, not you for them. They voted them self a pay raise and didn’t ask you now did they.

It’s the least we can do for the people that give of them self every day with out compensation.

-- Bill, Quarryville.
POSTED 060102_1438 EST

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