Fire departments across the nation have explorer programs. That's where kids ages 14 to 18 can train with adult firefighters and get a head start in the field.  

One New York fire department has the oldest explorer program in the country – and is turning 50 this fall.  

What You Need To Know

  • According to FASNY, there are around 40,000 fewer volunteer firefighters in New York than there were two decades ago, and departments have found it increasingly challenging to recruit new firefighters
  • That’s the exact issue explorer programs across the country aim to solve; most of the programs end up fizzling out, but one is about to celebrate 50 years
  • Explorer programs let kids ages 14-18 train alongside adult firefighters to learn about the field 

“So, I've grown up in the first responder services. Seen the family and the camaraderie my whole life, and I really want to be a part of that myself," said Schuyler Riedell, Explorer Post 475 member.

Riedell loves being a part of something bigger than herself.

“I truly get to help my community and meet my community," he said. 

She’s a part of the explorer program.

“We, of course, learned firomatic skills, like how to get into a building that was locked or blocked. That was a drill a few weeks ago. Last week, we did ladders. This week, we were doing how to work our saws and ventilation system. But along with the firomatic skills, we learned leadership, teamwork, fellowship. All that stuff, which is great in every area of life," Riedell said. 

According to the Firefighters Association of the State of New York (FASNY), there are around 40,000 fewer volunteer firefighters in New York than there were two decades ago, and departments have found it increasingly challenging to recruit new firefighters. But that’s the exact issue explorer programs across the country aim to solve. Most of the programs end up fizzling out, but Post 475 is about to celebrate 50 years.

“The kids join and stay active because the adults care about them and stay active in the post," says Patrick O’Connor, former chief and advisor of Explorer Post 475.

He said in 1986, the department had its first chief who was an explorer graduate, and most of the active firefighters in this department were graduates of the program.

“Since 1986, 90% of the chiefs in our fire department up to today, including the chief that we have today, have all come out of this post," O’Connor said.

Even though she’s still in high school, Riedell knows this is her calling and she’s putting out the call for other young women across the state to check out their local explorer programs.

“I think it's really great for women specifically to be in this field to show that it does not matter that I'm a girl. I can still lift the same amount of things. I can still do the same things. I'm just as smart and just as able as the guys. It does not matter," Riedell said.