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The FDIC Experience: Returning Home

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Alex, Laurie and Kathleen

Alex, Laurie and Kathleen

My goal is to chronicle, as best I can, some of the many great experiences I had last week at FDIC-2010 in Indianapolis, Indiana. There’s so many of them flowing through my brain, some of them are short snippets while others I remember as full-length features, and I plan to present them accordingly.

My FDIC-2010 experience ranks up there with some of the greatest memories of my career and life. Full of laughs (my stomach still hurts), meeting good people (and John and Rhett too!), going on “adventures” together and most importantly, sharing the brotherhood that few other professions enjoy.

So, with the intent of eventually sharing all of these experiences, I thought I would start with the end of the trip instead of the beginning; for in the end, in a very unexpected way, the value of my trip to FDIC and the importance of my returning home became very apparent to me.

You’ll see why in just a little bit. (more…)

Posted by tiger on April 25, 2010 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Brotherhood, Command & Leadership, Fire Rescue Topics, Funding & Staffing, Public Relations, R&R Toolkits, Training & Development, fire, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Going to the Show! See You in Indy.

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FDIC logo

I hope to see all of my loyal followers (both of them) at FDIC in a few short weeks. I’ll be presenting “From the X-Box to the Box Alarm” on Thursday-April 22, 2010 at 10:30am in Room 127-128. There’s room for 308 of my closest, most personal friends so there’s really no excuse for not joining me! LOL (more…)

Posted by tiger on April 10, 2010 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Command & Leadership, Featured, Funding & Staffing, News, Public Relations, Training & Development • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Creating a Clearinghouse

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FireRecruiter-904x160Patience is some times not one of my better virtues. I’ve been kicking around the idea of creating an online clearinghouse of recruitment and retention resources for quite some time.

Needless to say, it’s an area of the fire service that I’m quite absorbed in but I’ve always waited for someone else to create such a thing. Sure, there’s the National Volunteer Fire Council and VolunteerFD.org, which does a more than formidable job of compiling resources for the volunteer fire service, but I still felt there was something lacking. I needed more. We need more.

I identified a gap, an opportunity to create a single source for everything related to how we market to, recruit, indoctrinate, treat and retain the single most important resource in the fire service: our people.

Finally, I couldn’t wait any longer. I registered and published: FireRECRUITER.com – a single site dedicated to ensuring the survival and success of the volunteer fire service across our nation. (more…)

Posted by tiger on November 27, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Clearinghouse, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Rescue Topics, Funding & Staffing, News, Public Relations, R&R Toolkits, Training & Development • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

It’s Time to get SAFER!

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SAFER LogoThis article is one in a series of toolkits focusing on recruitment, retention, fire service marketing and leadership.

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Are you SAFER than you were last year?

That is, did you submit a grant application under the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) “Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response” program for recruitment and retention?

If you didn’t, you missed out on a great opportunity to better your fire department, or in our case, the entire volunteer fire service in our region.

Here’s the good news. You get another chance. DHS just announced that the application period for the 2009 SAFER grants opens November 16, 2009. (more…)

Posted by tiger on November 1, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Clearinghouse, Command & Leadership, EMS Topics, Fire Prevention & Education, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Funding & Staffing, News, Public Relations, R&R Toolkits, Training & Development • Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Listen Up: Recruitment Radio

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I recently had the opportunity to tape a radio show titled: “Sound Magazine” with Carl Russo of 97Rock.

The segment focused on the recruitment of volunteer firefighters and will air on several Citadel Broadcasting affiliates in the Buffalo area.

Carl is a long-standing afternoon jock on 97Rock and is also a volunteer firefighter with the East Seneca Volunteer Fire Company in West Seneca NY. Carl isn’t just a firefighter, he’s also president of the fire company and a commissioner in the fire district.

It offered me the opportunity to talk about being a kid who “ran to the curb” whenever I heard a fire siren and all of the great things that come with being a volunteer firefighter.

This was the second installment of “Sound Magazine” that focused on volunteer recruitment and more are planned for the future.

Click here to listen to “Sound Magazine” VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER RECRUITMENTSept 09

Let me know what you think.

Posted by tiger on September 15, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Brotherhood, Clearinghouse, Command & Leadership, Featured, Funding & Staffing, News, Public Relations, R&R Toolkits, Training & Development, Videos

Fortune Tellers

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Fortune Tellers:

In my last blog titled “Dig In.” I talked about the importance of story telling in the fire service and how it serves as a means of sharing experiences, traditions and values from generation to generation. In this article I try to tell a story, and in that story, I hope you can find a lesson to share for generations to come.

Almost every firefighter I meet speaks of how they always knew, from the time they were a very young boy or girl – that they wanted to be a firefighter.

I was one of those kids. I call them the “run to the curb” kind of kids. (more…)

Posted by tiger on September 1, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Brotherhood, Command & Leadership, Featured, Firefighting Operations, Funding & Staffing, Public Relations, R&R Toolkits, Training & Development

Albion FD Says: You Have to Want It!

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you-have-to-want-it-jd-patch-87x212“You Have to Want It!” is the message that Albion Volunteer Firefighters and EMTs are sending to their community in a new effort to challenge more citizens to become part of their local volunteer emergency response team.

Thanks to a four-year $134,500 grant from the US Department of Homeland Security specifically for the recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters, the all-volunteer fire department will have the funding to develop recruitment efforts and marketing materials with the help of Tiger Schmittendorf, who also helped them write and secure the grant. (more…)

Posted by tiger on June 21, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Command & Leadership, Funding & Staffing, News, Public Relations • Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

Night at the Museum

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Christina, Kyle, Tiger and Dennis

Christina, Kyle, Tiger and Dennis at the Buffalo Fire Historical Museum. PHOTO BY: Margaret Coghlan

OK. I admit it.

It was a day at the museum but hey, nobody ever made a movie with the catchy title: “Day at the Museum.”

Regardless, we had a great day recently when we visited the Buffalo Fire Historical Museum on William St. near Ogden St. on the city’s eastern border with the Town of Cheektowaga.

I was there once before, a very long time ago, but had forgotten just how rich the museum is with placeholders of our heritage. And the best part was, I went with friends.

I dragged along my best friend Chief Denny Allen, my 21-year old niece Christina who is a new firefighter with neighboring Lake Erie Beach; and Kyle, the 9-year old son of another best friend – Chief John Latimore. I’ll tell you about Kyle another day but for now, Kyle is a real kid with a great imagination who represents everything good about the neighborhood we grew up in. He’s a real stitch and fun to have around. That’s why I was glad he accepted our invitation to join us on this most excellent adventure. (more…)

Posted by tiger on January 26, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Brotherhood, Public Relations, Training & Development, training-fire-rescue-topics • Tagged: , , , , ,

Conveying Tragedy

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I consider myself a student of effective public and media relations. One of the most difficult messages a fire chief or public information officer must convey is that of a tragedy where, despite our best efforts, the results are fatal.

I often coach fire officers and public officials at incident scenes as how to best deliver difficult news. While I encourage them to focus on the role of the rescuers – not the victims, showing respect and concern for all those affected by the tragedy is very important as we speak publicly. This uncomfortable situation is one that any of us could be faced with at any time.

Such was the case on the early morning of New Year’s Day in the City of Tonawanda NY. Despite heroic efforts to reach her, a young female died in this residential structure fire. I know firsthand how these events can have a profound impact on you and your outlook on life.

As I do most information, I viewed this news story through three different sets of eyes. As a citizen, I was deeply affected by the loss of life in our community, especially by fire, and felt badly for those whose lives were changed by it. (more…)

Posted by tiger on January 3, 2009 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Command & Leadership, Fire Prevention & Education, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Funding & Staffing, Major Incidents, Mass Casualty Incident, News, Public Relations, Training & Development • Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Doyle sets out on new adventure to recruit volunteers

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This billboard for Doyle Hose Co. #1 in Cheektowaga NY was designed by Tiger Schmittendorf
This billboard for Doyle Hose Co. #1 in Cheektowaga NY was designed by Tiger Schmittendorf

“Life’s an adventure.” That’s the message that Doyle 1 Volunteer Firefighters, EMTs and Rescuers are sending in a new effort to encourage more citizens to become part of emergency services in Cheektowaga, NY.

Their goal is to motivate their residents to “Start Your Next Adventure” at Doyle 1 Fire/Rescue/EMS. Armed with posters, billboards and other marketing materials, Doyle 1 is promoting the many flexible volunteering opportunities they offer. (more…)

Posted by tiger on December 5, 2008 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Funding & Staffing, News, Public Relations, R&R Toolkits • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Power of the Pen

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This article is one in a series of toolkits focusing on recruitment, retention, fire service marketing and leadership.

 

 

Here’s the deal: It’s past midnight, I’m 7+ hours past deadline and the piece I’m writing about another county-based recruitment clearinghouse example isn’t ready for publication.

Then I started thinking, this article is for the July issue. July means summertime. Everyone deserves a summer break. So, let’s take the summer off from talking about clearinghouses and discuss some tools you already have in your toolbox: The power of the pen.

Promoting Your Fire Department to the Public

Several years ago, I decided that firefighting wasn’t dangerous enough, so I took up public speaking. Since then, I’ve come to realize that everyone is not like me. [Now, that’s an understatement.]

It amazes me that the same people who will run into a burning building while all the sane people are running out, will also drown in a puddle of sweat when someone sticks a camera or microphone in their face. Some people fear public speaking over death itself, or closely correlate the two.

Does your fire department have a Public Information Officer – a PIO? Every FD should, regardless of size or call volume. (more…)

Posted by tiger on November 11, 2008 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, All Blogs, Command & Leadership, Fire Prevention & Education, Funding & Staffing, Public Relations, Technology & Communications, Training & Development • Tagged: , , , , ,
© Copyright Tiger Schmittendorf 2009. All rights reserved.