10/20/2026
𝗥𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗢𝗵𝗶𝗼 𝗜𝘀 𝗥𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗢𝗳 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗡𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝗧𝗼 𝗔𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹?
There's something happening across rural Ohio that I genuinely believe more people need to be talking about, and that's the declining number of volunteers serving our local fire departments and emergency medical services.
For generations, small communities throughout Ohio have relied on ordinary people willing to do extraordinary things. These aren't necessarily people who make their living as firefighters, EMTs, or paramedics. They're farmers, factory workers, mechanics, nurses, teachers, business owners, retirees, and everyday residents who have decided that protecting their neighbors is worth sacrificing their own time.
They're the people who leave their dinner tables when the pager goes off. They're the people who get out of bed at two in the morning to respond to someone having a heart attack. They're the people who leave family gatherings, birthday parties, holidays, and other important moments because someone they've never met needs help.
And unfortunately, we're running out of them.
According to the Ohio Task Force on Volunteer Fire Service, the average age of a volunteer firefighter in Ohio is approximately 54 years old.
Think about that for a moment.
The average volunteer firefighter in our state is in their mid-50s. Many have spent 20, 30, or even 40 years serving their communities, and some continue answering calls well into their 60s and 70s.
These individuals have dedicated a substantial portion of their lives to public service, but they cannot realistically be expected to continue doing this forever.
At some point, someone else has to step up.
Ohio's volunteer firefighter certifications have declined by nearly 15% since January 2020, according to data examined in a January 2026 investigation by The Ohio Newsroom. Meanwhile, emergency service demands continue placing pressure on departments already struggling to maintain adequate staffing.
The problem isn't necessarily that people don't care about their communities. People's lives have changed. Many households rely on multiple incomes, people work longer hours or commute outside their communities, and family responsibilities make volunteering more difficult than it was decades ago.
But regardless of the reasons, the consequences remain the same.
When volunteers disappear, emergencies don't disappear with them.
A house fire doesn't wait until enough firefighters are available. A cardiac arrest doesn't happen at a convenient time. Someone trapped inside a wrecked vehicle doesn't have the luxury of waiting until a neighboring department can assemble enough personnel.
And that's something I wish more people understood.
Here in west-central Ohio, communities throughout Hardin, Auglaize, Allen, Logan, and Shelby counties depend heavily on volunteer and combination fire and EMS organizations.
Some departments respond to several hundred calls annually. Others may answer only 100 or 150 calls throughout an entire year.
But here's the thing I've tried to emphasize repeatedly when discussing rural emergency services:
Emergency services aren't funded simply to answer calls. They're funded to be ready when those calls happen.
A department responding to 120 emergencies annually might average one call every three days. That doesn't mean those emergencies occur three days apart.
There might be an entire week without a call, followed by three emergencies within an hour.
An ambulance could be transporting a patient to Lima, Sidney, Bellefontaine, or another hospital when a second emergency occurs back home.
When that happens, another ambulance may need to respond from a neighboring community through mutual aid. Depending on its location, staffing, and availability, that could mean a longer wait for someone who desperately needs medical attention.
Mutual aid is an essential part of rural emergency services, but it is not an unlimited resource. Neighboring departments have their own communities to protect and may already be handling emergencies themselves.
And if those neighboring departments are also struggling to recruit volunteers, the problem becomes regional rather than local.
Now consider the financial side of this issue.
According to the National Volunteer Fire Council, volunteer firefighters provide an estimated $46.9 billion in annual value to communities across the United States, based on an established national estimate of donated service.
That's an extraordinary contribution, especially when you consider how difficult it would be for many small communities to replace volunteer staffing with fully paid personnel.
A small township with a few thousand residents might not have the financial resources to employ multiple firefighters and EMTs around the clock.
Volunteer organizations make local emergency protection financially possible for communities that might otherwise struggle to afford it.
However, volunteering doesn't mean the services themselves are free.
Fire trucks and ambulances still require maintenance, fuel, insurance, repairs, and eventual replacement. Firefighters need protective equipment, radios, and training. EMTs and paramedics need medical supplies, certifications, continuing education, and equipment that can cost thousands of dollars.
Even something as simple as replacement electrode pads for certain cardiac monitors and defibrillators can cost hundreds of dollars.
These expenses continue whether a department answers five calls in a month or fifty.
And when volunteer staffing becomes impossible to maintain, communities may face difficult decisions about hiring paid personnel, increasing taxes, combining services, or relying more heavily on neighboring departments.
None of those options automatically solves the underlying problem.
So what can we do about it?
For starters, we need to recognize that volunteering isn't limited to running into burning buildings.
Many departments need people interested in becoming firefighters, emergency medical responders, EMTs, advanced EMTs, or paramedics.
Others may benefit from people who can assist with fundraising, administrative responsibilities, community outreach, equipment maintenance, and other support activities.
Not everyone is physically capable of fighting fires or providing emergency medical care, and that's perfectly understandable. But depending on the department, there may still be opportunities to contribute.
We also need to encourage younger generations to get involved.
That means supporting junior firefighter programs, introducing young adults to emergency services, making training opportunities accessible, and creating environments where new volunteers feel welcomed and respected.
It also means local governments, employers, and community leaders need to recognize the importance of supporting volunteer personnel.
We cannot expect people to continually sacrifice their personal lives, family time, and financial resources without providing them with the support they need.
And perhaps most importantly, we need to stop assuming somebody else will always be there.
Somebody else will answer the pager.
Somebody else will become an EMT.
Somebody else will join the fire department.
Somebody else will leave their family at Thanksgiving to respond to a medical emergency.
Somebody else will get out of bed at three in the morning when a neighbor needs help.
But what happens when everybody assumes somebody else will do it?
What happens when the volunteers who have carried these departments for decades finally retire?
What happens when a department that once had 25 active members is down to eight, and only three are available during the daytime?
What happens when the ambulance sitting inside your local station has nobody available to staff it?
What happens when somebody else simply doesn't exist anymore?
That's the reality some rural communities are already confronting.
I don't believe everyone needs to become a firefighter or EMT. Volunteering requires commitment, training, and personal sacrifices that not everyone can realistically make.
But I do believe everyone should take a moment to appreciate just how much we depend on the people who do.
And if you've ever considered volunteering, I strongly encourage you to contact your local fire department, ambulance district, or rescue squad and ask what opportunities are available.
You don't necessarily need prior experience. Depending on the department and position, training opportunities may be available.
Even if you can't volunteer, consider donating, supporting fundraisers, encouraging others to join, or simply thanking the people who continue answering the call.
Because these departments aren't just buildings filled with fire trucks and ambulances.
They're organizations built around people.
People who care enough about their communities to show up when someone needs help.
People who make rural emergency services possible.
And people who deserve to know that another generation is willing to carry on what they've spent their lives building.
At the end of the day, when you call 911, you expect somebody to come help you.
It's time we start asking ourselves a very important question: Who is going to be that somebody 10 or 20 years from now?
Our rural communities cannot afford to wait until the last volunteer turns off the lights and closes the station doors before we decide this matters.
The next generation of volunteers has to come from somewhere. Why not from our own communities?
