| Wednesday, April 29 and Thursday, April 30 saw phys-ed class at John Jay High School change into a firefighter obstacle course. For the third year in a row, Katonah Fire Department, Golden's Bridge Fire Department, Vista Fire Department and South Salem Fire Department volunteers brought the Trial By Fire program to the high school campus to both introduce students to the volunteer fire service, and perhaps inspire some of them to join their local volunteer fire department. Organized by KFD member and former Captain Laurie DeRosa, the program consists of three "stations"--a dummy drag, walking up and down bleacher stairs in turnout gear and wearing an SCBA bottle while carrying a hose pack, and radio communications. Students in groups of three or four rotated through the stations every five minutes, earning points and competing to earn the coveted "Trial By Fire" t-shirt. The program has not only become very popular at John Jay, resulting in all four departments seeing new recruits, but it also caught the attention of area media organizations. This year, ABC News 7 and News 12 both ran segments on the program, along with LoHud and Halston Media. We are excited that this program continues to foster interest in, and call attention to, the needs of the volunteer fire service. We would like to thank the Katonah Lewisboro School District for its incredible cooperation and assistance in making the program a success. |
