Berwyn Fire Co. launches strategic plan

Berwyn Fire Co. has implemented the first stage of a strategic plan to improve the quality of its services.

BERWYN » Berwyn Fire Co. has implemented the first stage of a strategic plan intended to improve the quality of its services over the next five to 10 years.

Recently, the fire company began the initiative by hosting a community input session at the firehouse on Bridge Street. During the meeting, 32 members of the community, including local government officials, police and school board representatives and residents, gathered together to share their views on fire company operations. It was “an awesome turnout, especially during the daytime,” said Eamon Brazunas, Berwyn Fire Co. chief. “It says that the community really cares about the fire company.”

The object, he continued, was “to gain a better understanding of residents’ expectations, identify concerns and explore residents’ priorities regarding programs and services that the fire company provides.”

At the outset of Thursday’s one-hour session, facilitator Ernst Piercy, Senior Technical Advisor for the Virginia-based Center for Public Safety Excellence, and himself a retired fire chief, distributed forms on which participants were urged to write their opinions about the fire company, if they experienced any incidents involving the fire company and how those incidents were handled, what could the company do to improve its services, and to rate the company’s overall performance.

“It’s important,” said Piercy, “that volunteer fire companies have an understanding of what the community demands or expects from them so they can carry out their vision.”

“It’s important that volunteer fire companies have an understanding of what the community demands or expects from them so they can carry out their vision.” — Ernst Piercy, Senior Technical Advisor for the Virginia-based Center for Public Safety Excellence

Over the next three days, Berwyn Fire Co. members and Piercy reconvened to assess the community input, evaluate the company’s strengths and weaknesses, review its mission and, based on these findings, develop strategic initiatives which were then turned into goals and specific objectives; from this, a plan was developed to implement the changes.

The plan, according to Brazunas, will be submitted to the Berwyn Fire Co. membership before it is finalized and implemented.