Photo courtesy Carson Rubin Gannon Bostian (l) and Carson Rubin
Most students’ jobs don’t consist of putting their lives at risk to help others. However four Godwin students volunteer at the fire department in Goochland County.
Juniors Carson Rubin, Gannon Bostian, David Parrot, and James Carroll volunteer at Centerville Station 3 in Goochland.
All stations in Goochland hire high school students as long as they over the age of 16.
“Goochland will provide all of the training for you. It’s a great way to meet new people while serving the community at the same time,” said Rubin.
Centerville Station 3 is a volunteer fire and rescue station. All of the hours worked by the group counts as volunteer hours.
“It’s a great experience being involved in a fire department especially when you are young because it teaches you to be responsible and how to react to stressful situations,” said Parrot.
A normal day at the station consists of checking gear and equipment, cleaning the fire house and trucks, and training. As soon as a call comes in, they drop everything and answer.
When they arrive at the scene of a fire, everyone has a set job.
These jobs include connecting the hose to the hydrant, pulling the hose line off the truck and laying out the tools needed in the yard.
They, then, wait for an assignment from the officer in charge or Incident Commander.
“A lot of thoughts go through my head when a call comes in. Immediately, I’m thinking of which task needs to be completed first as well as which tools should be grabbed,” said Rubin.
Rubin participates in EMT classes at Hermitage Technical Center. The class takes place every morning from first to third period.
Rubin has been with the fire department for four months, but has been training and riding along in Henrico County for the past two years.
The group of volunteers usually spends at least two nights a week at the station helping out where they can.
“It’s awesome to be able to help protect a community and knowing that what we do is extremely important to residents of Goochland County,” said Carroll.
