|
A Profile In Community Spirit: Jackson Mills Volunteer Fire Co.
By Keith Hagarty
 | | Recently celebrating their 55-year anniversary, the Jackson Mills Volunteer Fire Co. firehouse on North County Line Road has been a mainstay in the community for 12 years. Their restored, 1955 Ford firetruck with its side wooden ladder reminds today's firefighters of how far the fire district has come. |
|
Fifty-five years ago, the closest fire companies of Jackson and Howell were more than 15 miles away from those who lived in the northeastern section of Jackson.
They needed protection closer to home.
"From what I understand, there was an elderly couple who died in a house fire as they waited for firefighters from out of town," said Ray Hosford, former chief of the Jackson Mills Volunteer Fire Company.
Not wanting to risk such a tragedy striking again, 32 local men met at Red Men Hall in April of 1951 to form the Jackson Mills Vol- unteer Fire Company, with land donated from the Applegate family serving as their new home, about half-mile west from the current firehouse built 12 years ago on North County Line Road.
When emergency calls came into the fire company, they were first routed to the Sheriff's office in Toms River, then redirected to the general store in the Jackson Mills section of town, which would then activate a siren alerting nearby firefighters.
"The first fires they were answering back then were hay fires, lightening strikes and wood fires," said Hosford. "The way they raised money for the fire district was through paper and scrap metal drives."
While the methods of firefighting and fundraising has changed over the years, the commitment to the community and family ties remain just as steadfast as ever for the 50 members of the Jackson Mills Volunteer Fire Company.
"The history of this department is that there's a lot of family members here," said Chief Michael Lubertazi. "You've got the Reynolds family with the father and sons together, you have the Applegates and the Clayton brothers, you have the Poppe family and the O'Brien and Tremer family too. We have a lot of father, sons and brothers involved with this company."
As one of the more senior members of the fire company, former Chief Stan O'Brien has been in Jackson for nearly 50 years, with much of his time dedicated to Jackson Mills.
"It's just following the footsteps right up the line," said O'Brien.
With a dozen family teams serving the fire company over the last 50 years, Jackson Mills is proud of its roots and the good word spread throughout the community.
"That's how it is, and then they bring in their friends too," said Lubertazi. "That's how it grows here."
A Changing Community
O'Brien has seen the changes in town come rapidly with a mere 100 emergency calls in 1990, but more than 650 calls a decade later.
"We used to have a farm house here and farm house there, a general store over
here, but now you've got supermarkets,
a ShopRite and a McDonalds," he said. "This area is really changing."
As the density of houses and commercial building has become tighter and elevations of structures becoming taller, fire officials are relieved voters approved the recent purchase of Jackson Mills' first 100-foot ladder fire truck, expected to debut in March.
"We call these new houses McMansions and they're two-and-a-half stories tall, so you need at least a 40-foot ladder just to get to their roof," said Lubertazi.
When asked what the fire company has done in the past to battle similar fires without the ladder truck, Lubertazi said point blank, "We called for help."
While also a career firefighter in Newark, Lubertazi has been a Jackson resident for the past 10 years and a volunteer of Jackson Mills during his entire residency.
"I came here to help people," said Lubertazi. "Even though I'm a career firefighter, I'm just one of the guys here as a volunteer."
What does Lubertazi see as one of the biggest differences between battling blazes in Newark and Jackson? Being an urban area, Lubertazi is used to seeing many more daily emergency calls in Newark than in Jackson, and though longer response times come with the territory of an all-volunteer fire company, he admits it can sometimes get a little frustrating, with average response times taking about three to five minutes longer down here.
"For me, I'm just so used to getting (to the emergency scene) and helping someone so fast," said Lubertazi. "But it does get frustrating for me when I can't get there a little faster … all the guys here want to get there so fast, too, that it can get frustrating for everyone."
However, working in a cutting edge fire district in Newark has given Lubertazi some insight on the latest equipment upgrades available to fire districts, which has been a great benefit to Jackson Mills.
"I get the opportunity to use the new tools that are out there right way, and try to bring them down here and incorporate them," he said.
Today Jackson Mills is often a link in fire protection for the town, routinely teaming up with neighboring fire companies responding to calls. Working is such close proximity led Jackson Mills to push for shared training amongst the districts.
"We are in the middle of this town, responding to both ends of town," said Assistant Chief Rich Dallassandro. "We're constantly over to assist Cassville (Volunteer Fire Company) and we're also over here to assist (Jackson First Volunteer Company), so we're running in both directions and we figured it would be a lot easier to start working together and be on the same page."
So far, so good, according to President Rich Leonard.
"It's been awesome," he said of the combined-district training procedures.
Leonard has been a member of Jackson Mills for eight years, starting out as a 16-year old in the fire company's young firefighter program.
"A lot of my interests in firefighting grew from my dad, who was a career firefighter," said Leonard. "Then when I found out Jackson Mills had a young cadet program, I joined with one of the members of the Poppe family."
One of the driving forces behind any firefighter is the unwavering motivation to help those in need.
"It's the ability help people. You get to
meet a lot of new people," said Leonard. "Nothing's the same. Every call is different.
Every scene is different. Nothing is really routine. That's what keeps it exciting."
More Than Fighting Fires "We don't just fight fires here," Lubertazi explained. "We do a lot of fundraisers and charity events too, like our Santa patrols, dropping off food for the needy around Christmas time and Thanksgiving when we go to Oceans of Love in Toms River and pick up dinners for needy families and deliver them."
The list of community involvement doesn't stop there though, as the firefighters of Jackson Mills emphasize their constant need to lend a helping hand.
"That's what we're here to do is help," said Lubertazi.
The firefighters agreed it's a thrilling experience to see the excitement in the faces of the kids who walk into the firehouse and see the fire trucks up close for the very first time.
"We have the Cub Scouts come here, the Brownies, the Girl Scouts, and lots of kids, and we teach them about fire prevention and safety, and we hold an open house every October for anyone who wants to come in and see our firehouse and what we do," said Lubertazi.
Those interested in learning more about volunteering for the fire company are encouraged to stop by their firehouse on North County Line Road any Monday evening.
"We have a lot of young firefighters now, and the guys who join usually stay there for a long time," said Hosford. "I think it's the camaraderie and hanging out with all their buddies. Everybody would help everybody if they need something, and I think you just form a special family."
Lubertazi and his fellow fire officials were in complete agreement, saying that's what makes Jackson such a strong community.
"We have a good bunch of guys here in this town," said Lubertazi. "There's a lot of pride not only in our fire district, but in all the other districts too."
| 
)
)