In your greatest time of need whether it's a medical emergency, motor vehicle accident, fire, natural disaster or any other situation - when a quick response is a matter of life or death -- who do you turn to? In Barnegat it's your neighbors...our volunteer 1st Aid Squad. These highly-trained and skilled men and women deserve the highest recognition and support from the community they so unselfishly serve. We at DowntownBarnegat.com would like to take a closer look at -- and salute -- these very special volunteers.

The squad has been in existence for over half a century and now is made up of 47 active members; Emergency Medical Technicians, Drivers, Cadets, and support people who help with answering calls and administrative duties. These people - our neighbors - operate 24/7. In 2007, The volunteer squad answered 1440 calls! Not to mention the countless hours they spend training and educating the public during various community events. Gene McGetrick, President, told us each of the 47 active members volunteer approximately 750 hours per year...that's about 35,000 hours of total service from the entire squad!

Despite the decision the Barnegat Twp. Committee made in 2005 to employ a separate paid 1st aid company during the hours of Mon-Fri 6am-6pm, Barnegat's VOLUNTEER 1st Aid Squad continues to operate 24/7. They respond to all calls THROUGHOUT Barnegat Mon-Fri 6pm - 6 am, and all day Saturday & Sunday. During the time the paid company serves Barnegat, The Barnegat Volunteer 1st Aid Squad serves as backup to Waretown and Stafford 1st aid squads, quickly responding to our neighboring towns with an unselfish dedication that should make Barnegat proud. The only difference between our volunteer squad and a paid service is that the volunteers do not receive a paycheck. Talk about dedication!

It's important to know that this all-volunteer squad has the same training as the paid service. They are competely committed to excellence in service, striving for the highest standards in training for all of their volunteers. As Captain Rob Liccione explained, EMTs receive their certification after 140 hours of extensive training and passing the State test. Drivers also receive special training and along with EVERYONE on the squad, are CPR certified. Even the support people on the squad must be CPR certified. Captain Rob Liccione went on to say that 6 members of their squad are now CPR instructors for the Americal Heart Association and have gone out into the community to train the public on various occassions, and are always happy to provide that service to any group. They are also active in providing free medical screenings to the public and are looking to branch out and do even more for the community in that regard. "Although we're not always seen, we are out there doing a lot of service for the community." Gene McGetrick said. If you look closely, you will always find these volunteers at every community event and high school football game...not there to enjoy themselves, but ready to be of service.

Along with their commitment to the best training and continuing education within their squad, they are dedicated to always be working on improving their response time to emergencies. The squad has decreased their AVERAGE response time to 9 minutes - which is a full 6 minutes LESS than their response time just 4 years ago. They are proud of that, and the support they lend to other 1st responders in our community. During the Pine Barrens' wildfires, the squad was right there in the thick of the crisis providing medical help and transport to both firefighters and residents.

So get to know these dedicated, hard-working, highly-trained people within our community that volunteer their time and talent to help you and your family...in all kinds of emergency situations. You might wonder why they do go out in all kinds of nasty weather and emergency conditions, during all hours of the night and weekends, with absolutely no compensation. As one senior member of the squad John McClory put it simply..."We just want to help people."

If you are interested in joining or helping out Barnegat's volunteer 1st Aid Squad please contact President Gene McGetrick Cell # 609-661-8381 (email - bfaspresident@verizon.net), or Captain Rob Liccione Cell # 609-618-1496 (email: bfascaptain@verizon.net).