In response to an editorial letter in the Ocean City Today newspaper dated February 15, 2008, about the OCFVC addressing the Ocean City Council Members Jimmy Hall is asking for the council members to reconsider their vote to support the volunteer fire company. Let's hope that the council members realize how large this decision is.
This decision will require an extremely large amount of additional monies that the taxpayers will have to anti up to pay when the fire company takes their 50% ownership of the fire equipment, land and buildings that the equipment is housed in. Also, the taxpayer should be aware that the Town Of Ocean City will need to hire full-time, paid personnel to take the positions of the volunteer firefighters duties that are presently at no cost to the taxpayer.
As a former active/now "life" member of the Ocean City Volunteer Fire Company, I took pride and still continue to take pride, in responding to the fire calls while being active. It gives me pleasure to that I am able to give something back to the community that I have lived in all my life that does not cost the community one cent. I'm sure that the feeling is shared by many other firefighters. I, also as a taxpayer, want to let the taxpayers and residents know that by replacing the Ocean City Volunteer Fire Company, who commit thousands of hours per year to the cause, the town will have to replace these volunteers with paid personnel at a cost of potentially millions of dollars in salaries and benefits that is not currently being allocated. So, ready yourself for some major tax increases.
If the council proceeds along the path that they are heading now you can bet that the volunteer fire company will not leave Ocean City any less protected than it is today and will only leave when the volunteer fire company feels comfortable that the residents and tourists are fully protected and not a day sooner.
I think it's a shame that the negative politics playing out in City Hall are affecting the health and wellbeing of the town and all its property owners. Please show your displeasure with this current decision and attend the meeting at City Hall on Tuesday, February 19th at 6pm. If you can't go to this meeting. Please send your thoughts to the Salisbury News blog site at this address: http://www.town.ocean-city.md.us/video/videofiles/data/021208a.html.
Bob and Cindy Jester
Publisher's Note: There are additional articles below this Post on the Ocean City Volunteer Fire Department. Scroll down to see those two articles or click HERE and HERE instead. Again, don't miss Stewart Dobsons Editorial HERE from the Ocean City Today Newspaper.
5 comments:
Bob and Cindy Jester, sounds like the parents of President Jay Jester.
Millions of dollars to Hire career staff. Add a penny to room tax or something along that lines and the tourist pay for the staffing not the tax payers. Everyone wins. The vollies get their kingdom in West OC and Ocean City get career staff.
They're not related to Jester.
Council Member Hall knows that if Chief Larmore becomes the head of the division he may gain financial support for his campaigning when he runs for Mayor..
Got to love dirty politics
Last I checked, no one wanted to replace the volunteers. Both sides wanted a combination department, with one independent chief.
The heads of the OCVFC should be ashamed of their actions. A good leader identifies what he lacks, and works to improve what is inadequate. They don't quit and throw a temper-tantrum.
If the council members we knowledgeable on the subject, they're realize that Larmore isn't the person for the job. It's nothing personal, but the man is not qualified to run a fire department (it's amazing the OCVFC doesn't have requirements for running for chief, how far behind the times are they?).
To reiterate. No one wanted to replace the volunteers with paid personnel, but manpower and staffing in the town needs to be looked at, and most likely augmented with more paid personnel. All of this would be done under a new, paid chief. It's ridiculous that Larmore tried to place himself in that position.
Perhaps both Larmore and Jester should begin looking at what truly is better for the citizens and guests of Ocean City and their safety, rather than working to conglomerate power in their favor.
Why should the council re-evaluate their decision making skills? They were put in that position for a reason, voted on by the "TAX PAYERS" of Ocean City Maryland.
There is evident proof that only a handful of the "Active Membership" live in the City. Less than 20 of the 72 actually live in the corporate city limits. Of the 237 members only 33 of these are SCBA Qualified. These include the active members, life, gold badge, and associate members. Not including the Career personnel that are also members of the OCVFC.
For the citizen's of Ocean City who do not know the difference between SCBA Qualified (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus) and non-SCBA Qualified. The SCBA Qualified members are the firefighters you see wearing the so called "AIR PACK" These SCBA Qualified members are required to maintain and go through a Yearly Physical (Paid for by the CITY) a SCBA Re cert, that includes didactic and practical evolutions. These are the firefighters that do the job. The firefighters that run into burning buildings when everyone is running out.
I feel that the citizens of Ocean City and the tourism that come to view Ocean City deserve the best that is possible. Both sides hold solid ground in their own way but however the Volunteers do not present all the facts.
Chief Larmore is invited to every command staff meeting, that is held for the Career division. However what is not made known is how the Volunteers held secret meetings and retreats that the FIRE/EMS and Representatives from that division knew nothing about.
To reconsider the decision that was made is a mistake. It's to late now to reconsider. There is obvious bad blood and feelings between both OCVFC and FIRE/EMS as well as OCVFC and the MAYOR and CITY COUNCIL. Why would you risk the chance of even more problems.
There is a group of Volunteers that feel that the move is a mistake and are going to stay and volunteer for the City, because they know the the true mission of the fire service. How can you say that you have the backing of the OCVFC 100% in a letter to the Mayor written by the Chief, when you have members that still feel that they are required to serve the community. The decision was made by President Jester immediately after the Work session to hold a special membership meeting. It was not a regularly Scheduled meeting and all drills were canceled.
How can any one person say that you need to reconsider the decision made, when it could now officially Jeopardize public safety by giving the Volunteer chief who has "HARD FEELINGS", a personal agenda, and very minimal training the hiring and firing powers. The leadership of the OCVFC has already made it clear that it wants Joe Theobald, head of EMERGENCY SERVICES removed from his position, to hire a paid Chief that answers to the volunteer fire company, them hire their own paid firefighters, and to have the FIRE/EMS division just do EMS only.
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