Volume 1, Issue 6
Table of Contents

Cover Story:
Small Business is BIG Business
In Rockland, small businesses are the engine that drives the economy

RBD Round-Up:
How'd He Do That?
The interesting rise of Mal McLaren
RBD Business Survey
How do you communicate?

DEPARTMENTS:

Economic Round-Up
• The Smart Investor
Your portfolio is doing great, so why rebalance?
• Economic Viewpoint
The U.S. Attraction Factor

Business Round-Up
• Down, But Not Dirty
The best way to handle company layoffs is to provide options
• Marketing By Design
The top 15 campaigns of the last 100 years. You know them all, but why?
• Receivables
One of the largest headaches for small businesses

Ask The Experts
• Talking Taxes
• Payroll: Key Issues
• Workplace Hotline

Invest in Your Community
• Where's the Fire?
Rockland Volunteers - increasing efforts and awareness

Odds & Ends
• The Last Minute
• Rockland Newsmakers

Dedicated Section:
Rockland Business Association:

The President’s Desk
New Healthcare Tax
will hurt small and midsized businesses. Here's how.

RBA/United Way Golf Outing
The Rockland Open: Monday, May 21st

RBA Happenings
• Committee and Council Info
• Calendar of Events
• New Members

We all know that as Rockland continues to become more prosperous, its problems grow, too, including traffic, urbanization of once rural areas, excess development.

The resulting rising housing prices—the average home price is about $600,000 here—however, cause a different problem. When you price out the middle class, you rob the county of one of its most priceless commodities—volunteers. And not just any volunteers, but those men and women who give their time to be volunteer firefighters and emergency medical technicians.

“What we really talking about here is not the new homeowner, but the second generation; the 23 and 24-year-olds who grew up here, go to college, graduate and then want to come back and live in Rockland, then find they can’t afford it,” says Frank Hutton. “Those are the people we are pricing out, and those are the people we need.”

Hutton, who has been a volunteer firefighter since 1966, is the chairman of a countywide initiative called Committee to Promote Volunteerism in Rockland County Emergency Services, Inc., or more commonly known as Creative Approach. It’s a non-profit that works with the county’s 26 fire departments and 14 ambulance corps—which represents more than 3,000 volunteers—to promote awareness of what these volunteers provide to the community. “Our goal is to educate the public and increase awareness of our fire and ambulance services' reliance on volunteers,” says Hutton. “Our mission is to increase this number by recruitment or retention and to promote active involvement by businesses, government and other Rockland County organizations.

Rocklanders Do Volunteer
Hutton says there’s a misconception that people in Rockland aren’t interested in volunteering for their local fire or ambulance squads. “The problem here is that most people aren’t aware that we are looking for volunteers, because they don’t always know that we are volunteers. If you call up 20 people in Rockland and ask them if they dialed 911 who would show up, they’re amazed that the fire department or EMS Corp are volunteers.”

Why? Many transplants are from urban or other areas where fire and ambulance squads are run by paid staffs. “People will come down to the firehouse at open house and want to see the bunk rooms. There aren’t any. We want to educate the community on what we are and what we do.”
When Hutton started out, the ranks were mostly filled by blue-collar workers and local business people, who could tear out of their establishments whenever the siren sounded. Today’s Rockland is a bedroom community where many commute outside the county to work. Again, as Hutton points out, what that does is deny an important segment of the population the opportunity to live here, and, volunteer here.

His own son started in the Rockland fire service, went to college and came back. “He told me, I can move out and get an apartment, but then I can’t afford a car, or I can get a car and stay home. He actually moved to New Jersey.”

“That’s what we’re looking for— those 22,23,24 year-olds because they are our next officers. We need for them to be able to rent an apartment, then buy a townhouse so they can still live here, otherwise, we lose them, and who will fill that spot?”

Traditionally, as Hutton mentions, blue-collar workers typically fill the ranks of emergency responders, but with changing demographics, he says, you’re just as likely to see lawyers and doctors rolling out on the rigs. “Once people are aware of what we do, and what we need, we do get volunteers from all walks of life.”

In their professional capacity, they have one field of endeavor that they are good at, but maybe they find something missing, Hutton explains. “You become involved in fire or EMS, and suddenly, you have a whole new skill set; you’re having to think on your feet real quick in an emergency situation. In many cases, such as in fire, it’s just you and your partner making a quick decision on what action to take.”

For others, a childhood dream can be fulfilled in adult life. “Maybe as a kid, you thought, I want to be a fireman, and then you got into high school or college, and the thought never crossed your mind again. Now you move here, the opportunity is here, and many men and women take advantage of it.

Volunteers run the gamut, from high school kids—they can volunteer with the fire department after taking a class at age 16, but must be 18 for EMS—to, as Hutton said, local business people, attorneys, doctors, store owners, law enforcement and on and on. “There a new set of skills that you learn, and yes, obviously you are doing something to help people, so that’s a big motivation for many volunteers.”

“I think what moves most people is that they get that feeling in their gut about this; once you got it, you’re not going to lose it.”

Hutton does not want to lose his volunteers—or would be volunteers either. They see volunteerism certainly as giving back to the community, but Hutton says the trade-off is not being balanced.

“You can look at this one way and realize, the fire service we provide saves Rockland County $100 million every year; we save that money for the whole county.”

The Creative Approach Committee helped the County’s fire department get ISO certified in 2001, which has saved another $36 million for the county, Hutton says. “The houses are getting better ratings since the ISO and again, that’s saving a lot of money for everybody.” RBD

Some Frequently Asked Questions About Volunteering

Q: How much time does it take to be a volunteer?
A: It varies from week to week, but on the average you'll put in seven or eight hours. Many volunteers enjoy putting in more.

Q: What will my training cost?
A: It will cost you nothing. Thousands of dollars of valuable career training will be made available to you free of charge.

Q: How long will it be before I can make a genuine contribution?
A: Immediately. And your responsibilities will increase as you gain experience and training.

Q: Will I have any out-of-pocket cost?
A: No. Your uniform, equipment - even your annual physical - will be provided for free.

Q: How do I get started?
A: Just fill out the on-line form or call the Training Center at 364-8800. They'll contact you and tell you everything you need to know about becoming a fire or rescue provider.

What Does It Take?
Excitement about volunteering is contagious, Hutton says. “If you get one HS student and you get him excited, chances are he’s going to tell his friends and you’ll get someone else.“ High school students are great volunteers and Hutton cites a case of two 16-year-olds and a 19-year-old Lieutenant making a great save in Spring Valley.

• To become a volunteer firefighter, you must take the Firefighter 1 course and be at least 16-years-old.
• To become an EMS, you have to be 18 and pass a state exam. Hutton says many families join the EMS
together, parents and kids, to find something to do together.
• The Explorers is a county program for kids—there are currently 65 kids in the program—and they
meet twice a month on Sunday at the Training Center. “They do everything we do,” says Hutton.

If you’re interested, whether you’re a teenager or an adult, call the Rockland Fire Training Center. They will take your name and address, then figure out what fire department and ambulance corps is in your area. They will get back in touch with you. The Rockland Fire Training Center is located at 35 Firemen’s Memorial Drive in Pomona; 845-364-8800. Volunteer Training is held weekday evenings 7pm to 11pm and weekends.