Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) announced today that the Middletown Township Fire Department has been awarded a $136,675 grant through the Department of Homeland Security’s Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Program to help in its recruiting efforts. This is round seven of the FY 2016 announcements.

     “The women and men who put their lives on the line to protect our communities are among our very best,” said Smith. “This grant will help connect the Middletown Township Fire Department with those who have the passion and ability to protect their neighbors. As an all-volunteer fire department, federal assistance is crucial in this task.”

     The grant was awarded by the Department of Homeland Security to “help create a more favorable working environment for volunteer firefighters by increasing the number of trained, certified and competent firefighters capable of responding to emergencies.”

     The Fire Department intends to use the funds to create a mobile sign board, leave behinds (informative papers that can be left in specific locations), updates to their website and for the creation of an administrative position to help with outreach to current and former fire fighters. The town’s actions will be used as a template for future grants in New Jersey.

     “The Township relies so heavily on our Fire Department. We can’t quantify their importance”, said Middletown Mayor Gerry Scharfenberger. “The real lifeblood of the department is the members, who often have parents or grandparents who served. The new recruits that this grant will bring are essential to keeping our town healthy and thriving.”

     “Over the past few years the fire service as a whole has realized issues finding ways to gain new members,” said Anthony Citarella, Chief of the Middletown Township Fire Department. “The Middletown Township Fire Department is grateful to all parties involved with making this possible. The Middletown Township Fire Department will strive to be a template for the State of New Jersey as to how best attract and retain new membership by sharing our results with the NJ State Fireman’s Association and many other groups both local, county and state wide; after all the average age of a firefighter in New Jersey is 53.”

     The Middletown Township Fire Department, located on Kings Highway, is comprised of eleven fire companies, five chief offices, special services, air unit, fire police, field communications and fire academy. For more information on the Middletown Fire Department, including information on how to join, click here.

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