Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire District is currently accepting applications for the upcoming Spring Volunteer Firefighter Academy. Stations in Sisters, Camp Sherman and Squaw Creek Canyon Estates are actively looking for volunteers who have a passion for giving back and serving their communities.

The tentative start date for the academy is April 19, and it will host a combination of new volunteers for Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District, as well as Cloverdale Rural Fire Protection District. The academy will focus on hands-on training of multiple skills such as fire suppression, deploying ground ladders, hose deployment, structural search and rescue, property conservation/overhaul, vehicle extrication, ropes and knots, and many other integral skills that firefighters need to understand.

The academy also will focus on firefighter knowledge and skills that include topics such as firefighter safety, communications, building construction, hazmat awareness/operations, and fire dynamics.

“We have an incredible cadre that have been leading our academies for years that include a combination of our active volunteer firefighters as well as support from the career staff at Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire and Cloverdale Fire districts,” said Volunteer Recruitment and Retention Coordinator Tyler Smith.

The academy is taught in a hybrid fashion and allows for online learning and reading throughout the week. The academy meets once a week on Monday nights for hands-on practice covering the material that was assigned over the previous week.

“There are a couple ‘Big Saturdays’ that the academy will take part in as well, which gives them a longer allotted time to practice their skills, and to put the knowledge they have learned into scenario-type training and practice,” Smith said.

Once recruits have completed the academy and earned their Firefighter 1 certification, they can begin responding to emergency calls with the department, as well as scheduling volunteer shifts to help with daily staffing.

There are multiple other certifications and training offered to volunteers during their tenure with the District that include driving and operating fire engines, ambulances, and wildland firefighting trucks, CPR and first-aid training, wildland firefighting qualifications, and many others.

For more information contact Smith at 541-549-0771 or by email at recruitment@sistersfire.com.