Emma Sapong
The Buffalo News, N.Y.
ALEXANDER, N.Y. — The Alexander Volunteer Fire Department’s only ambulance is 15 years old and needs to be replaced – badly. Not only is it rusted, it’s increasingly unreliable.
Just last month, the alternator and starter gave out, putting it in the shop for a day and half, and leaving 200 households in this rural Genesee County community without free medical response and transportation. At this point, the department’s not sure it’ll pass inspection to keep it on the road.
“Our fear is if we don’t replace the ambulance soon, we won’t be able to meet all the needs of the community,” said Kelly O’Neil, a basic EMT with the department’s ambulance service.
But money from its carnival, tractor pull and chicken dinners have not come close to the $150,000 for a new ambulance.
Since traditional fundraising efforts are not adding up, the cash-strapped department is turning to a 21st-century fundraising tool – crowdfunding on the Internet. The department is running a GoFundMe campaign. Donations also can be sent to O’Neil at P.O. Box 336, Alexander, NY 14005.
The campaign was launched Jan. 4, and as of early evening Sunday, $850 had been donated.
“We’re hoping to raise money and awareness; no donation is too small,” said O’Neil, who is also the secretary of the department’s new ambulance committee. “It could be $5, which could add up. People don’t have to have a fortune to donate.”
The Fire Department is a complete volunteer operation, and since the early 1970s, its ambulance has served the community free of charge, O’Neil said. The department receives about 200 calls a year, and 80 percent are medical-related and handled by the ambulance crew, which comprises 12 to 14 volunteer basic and advanced EMTs, she added.
While the Fire Department receives funding from fire protection taxes, the ambulance service survives solely on donations and fundraisers. Ambulances are supposed to be replaced every 10 years but the economy slowed or dried up funding sources, delaying the purchase of a new vehicle. The department was counting on a FEMA grant but recently learned it’s not eligible. When the ambulance isn’t available, its crew can respond to calls in fire trucks. Mercy EMS in Batavia is also an option. It’s the department’s backup service, but it’s a paid service, O’Neil said.
“We’re grateful to have Mercy but they are a paid, professional, for-profit operation,” she said. “When we go to a call, residents don’t have to pay out of pocket or have their insurance billed.”
The department thinks it’ll take about five years to raise the $150,000 to buy a basic ambulance. But its most recent repairs totaled $3,000. The department worries those repairs will become more frequent as the ambulance continues to age and decline. And money being raised to pay for a new vehicle will have to go to pay for repairs, thwarting efforts for a new ambulance, O’Neil explained.
Along with the GoFundMe, the department’s new ambulance committee has contacted elected officials and will work to educate the community about the importance and the plight of its ambulance service.
“We’ve provided this service for decades. To lose it would be a big loss to the community,” O’Neil said.
©2015 The Buffalo News (Buffalo, N.Y.)