Service to the community
Greenwich members past and present reflect on their involvement, growth of department
Aformer chief of the Greenwich Fire Department says the organization was built on the dedication of its members and community contributions.
Schofield In this regard, Randy believes the department belongs to the community. A veteran member with 30 years of firefighting experience in Greenwich, Schofield served as the department's chief for three years.
“It was my life,” he said. After joining in 1985, he wouldn't even go for a drive on Sunday afternoons because he knew he had to be back at the hall to work bingo at 5 p.m. He worked every bingo, as the department had only 14 or 15 members then.
Looking back at the department's history, Schofield said they had no choice but to be resourceful and innovative, because money and human resources were tight.
As he recently told Kings County council, Greenwich was once considered by many to be the “asshole department of Kings County.” Schofield said that isn't true today.
“They would never call us, they would bypass us all the time, because we didn't have the right gear and all of that type of stuff, and the right training,” Schofield said.
He said the department didn't even have breathing apparatus then. It's been an uphill battle, but through the leadership of a succession of chiefs and with a lot of hard work, they've been able to “turn things around and make the department what it is today.”
“I'd put this department up against any department in the county, and that's a big statement when you have somebody like the Town of Kentville that has 60-some members,” Schofield said.
He said that although he has been away from most firefighting activity for about seven years now, he still has a scanner in his kitchen.
“No matter whose tone goes off, at 3 o'clock in the morning, I'm sitting on the side of the bed listening to see what it is,” Schofield said.
“You can ask any of the older firemen, once you get it in your blood, you can't lose it. It won't go away.”
Schofield said he believes this dedication is rooted in a sense of pride for helping your community, or someone else's community when it comes to mutual aid calls.
He said he knows an amalgamation of the Greenwich and Wolfville fire districts is pending once a new station is built to serve both areas.
However, he said a decision to close the Greenwich department as of April 1 that was made by Kings County council, the Town of Wolfville and the Greenwich
“entirely Fire Commission was wrong” in the way that it was handled.
The decision has since been rescinded.
Schofield said perhaps Kings County councillors
Greenwich thought that since is a smaller department, they may have taken it lying
down. However, people spoke loudly enough against it to demonstrate that wasn't the case.
Schofield said it's his opinion that the future amalgamation
of fire districts across the municipality may be something that's on Kings County council's radar.
WELCOMING TO WOMEN
Firefighter Amy Schofield is one of the department's 11 female members. Greenwich has the most female members of any department in Kings County.
Although she admits to being shy, Schofield said she felt compelled to stand up and speak out against closing the department at a Feb. 27 public meeting in Greenwich.
“I had to speak, how could you not? I love firefighting,” she said. “I felt if I did not stand up and say what I felt, I would regret it. I don't want to regret anything.”
During the past month, she was impressed with how the membership rallied together around a common cause. She thought it was great seeing how some members shined when faced with that adversity.
Schofield is currently taking a number of courses through the Nova Scotia Fire School, working toward her Level 1 and 2 firefighter certifications. She said it takes commitment, but when you're passionate about something, “it doesn't seem like work.”
The 37-year-old single parent of a three-year-old daughter joined the department in August 2020.
Schofield, who already had more than two years of volunteer firefighting experience at the time, said she enjoys the challenge of continual training and learning new skills while forging tighter
bonds with her “fire family.” She also enjoys the social aspect of meeting new people.
Schofield said she doesn't often think about gender when it comes to firefighting, but noted the Greenwich department is a welcoming environment for women and everyone is considered equal.
“We've got some strong leadership, both male and female,” she said.
Schofield said it's good to see representation. She hopes the female firefighters in Greenwich serve as an example to young women, perhaps opening their eyes to the potential of someday joining the fire service.
Schofield usually brings her daughter along when doing
behalf community activities on of the fire department.
She wants her daughter to follow her own path, but she thinks it's great that she is being exposed to a culture of volunteerism, achieving goals, and the various role models that exists within the department at such a formative age.
Schofield said perhaps the most challenging aspect of being a volunteer firefighter is balancing those responsibilities with family while also working a full-time job.
LOOKING TO EXPAND
Chief Jason Ripley said the department is looking for more volunteers, with the goal of increasing membership from 39 to 45.
He said the department has a little more clarity with the recent decision to put off amalgamation until a new fire station to serve Greenwich and Wolfville can be built.
“We talked about it in the past, and now we think it's a good time,” Ripley said. “With our name out there and some of the community support, we're hoping that a few people will come in and join up.”
He said there was one potential new member from Greenwich who attended training on March 21, and he's received a couple of Facebook messages from people who are interested.
Ripley pointed out that being chief of the department isn't about him. It's about the membership and the community they serve.
“I just did my best to try to steer the ship through what was some very choppy waters,” Ripley said. “I thought I knew what stress was before all of this happened but the last month has really redefined it for me.”
He said it's been one of the most difficult times in his life but witnessing the outpouring of community support for the department served to energize the members to push through some of the challenges. He said it also served to boost morale.
Ripley described the dedication of the members as “above and beyond.” He said they could have looked at the situation in one of two ways: either stand together and fight or turn and run.
“Wveryone stuck together and kept the faith,” Ripley said. “Hopefully, we're turning a corner now and we won't have to deal with that stress for a while.”
For more information, visit the Greenwich Fire Department Facebook page.