GREENFIELD — Several students dressed in bright red Greenfield Fire Territory shirts stood around in a circle watching intently as two other students were giving CPR to a mannequin.
Firefighters from GFT were watching over their shoulders, barking out orders to call 911; have someone ready to talk with first responders; step in and relieve the CPR crew and to just remain calm and focus on the person in need.
That was just one of the lessons being taught at this year’s Greenfield Fire Territory Teen Fire Academy. The 22 teens who took part earned CPR, bleed control, and basic first aid certificates following classes and hands-on work.
“We’re trying to give the teens some real skills they can actually take home and apply,” Public Safety Officer Luke Eichholtz said.
In order to increase interest to pursue a career in public safety, especially EMS and firefighting, the GFT hosted students from Greenfield Central Junior High and other county schools late last week for the two-day event.
“Probably the best thing about all of this is we’re getting kids into the firehouse and introducing them to the profession and hopefully getting them interested in a career with us,” Eichholtz said. “If you look around the nation, the numbers for people wanting to be firefighters is going down, so this gives us a chance to sort of generate some real interest.”
Last year, the academy only had six participants, so officials were glad to see over 20 students taking part this time around, Eichholtz said.
The students had the opportunity to train with real GFT firefighters, put on real gear and take part in controlled, real-life scenarios over the course of two days to learn what it is like to be a firefighter.
“They might think they know what we do and how it feels to wear the gear but when we’re done here, they’re know a lot more and have a better idea of what firefighters do every day,” Eichholtz said.
Davis Decker was one of the students whose father actually works as a lieutenant for the GFT and said he was looking forward to the two-day training to see if firefighting is something he might be interested in as a career.
“My dad said this was something I could try if I wanted to and I just kind of took a real interest in it,” Davis said. “You learn a lot of things here that most people never get the chance to learn — things that could actually save someone’s life.”
While one group of students was outside working on CPR hands-on skills, another group was in the GFT basement putting on real fire gear, including boots, jackets, protective head gear and more.
“This stuff is heavy,” one student said, dressed from head to toe in the gear, which included water-resistant boots.
Some of the students who have taken part in the academy go on to become cadets in the GFT program, which is a direct path into becoming a real firefighter.
Ethan Cales, a senior at Triton Central, lives in Hancock County but is part of the GFT Cadet program. He plans to be a career firefighter and said he really enjoys helping out at the academy.
“I’ve been able to go out on some rides, and it’s really amazing to see how when a firefighter arrives they can change lives,” Ethan said. “We can help them on their worst day and you don’t know what that’s like until you see if first-hand.”
He says the work being done by the students and firefighters is eye-opening during sessions like the academy.
“It’s pretty neat all the things they’re going to get to see and learn here,” he said.
Ethan, who is 17, has already taken two firefighter certification classes through his high school where he will take two more during his senior year. By the time he graduates high school, he’ll be ready to be hired on as a full-time firefighter.
“That’s the plan,” he said with a smile. “Just being able to make a difference is your community is what this is all about.”
Day one of the academy was set aside to learn about EMS skills while day two was all about firefighting skills, including skills they can apply to every day life.
