Young first responders learning on the job

They’re helping the community while earning valuable skills for the fields they plan to pursue.

National First Responders Day took place last week and Fire Prevention Week was held in October, but there are some first responders who don’t always get noticed: high school students.

At Elizabeth Forward High School, there are more than 20 students grades nine through 12 who are volunteer junior firefighters, EMTs, dispatchers and more. They are trying to help their community while balancing classes, extracurricular activities and jobs.

They serve in Elizabeth Township, Elizabeth Borough, Blaine Hill and Buena Vista fire departments in the Elizabeth area along with SouthEast Regional EMS and Brownsville Ambulance Service.

Student EMTs

High school students cannot volunteer as EMTs who provide patient care because of liability and legal restrictions.

However, students who turn 17 can complete the required EMT training and licensing exams, with the ability to officially become licensed when they’re 18.

While waiting to be licensed, students can prepare by taking EMT courses.

Sabella Molinaro, a junior, is a training EMT for SouthEast Regional Emergency Medical Services in Elizabeth Township. She said she grew up around firefighters and is still surrounded by paramedics and fire personnel.

“I found an EMT class through CCAC, and that’s how I started,” Molinaro said. “They had to have a special exception for me to do it because you were not supposed to start until you were 16. I started it when I was 15, and I ended it when I was 16.”

Molinaro took her EMT class this year and had to ride on the trucks to be able to get her hours in as a volunteer.

Molinaro rides horses, teaches karate, works at a Renaissance festival and works at an ice cream shop during the warm months on top of her EMT work. She added emergency services don’t typically hire teenagers unless they are out of high school.

Junior firefighters

Junior firefighter programs allow students from ages 14 through 17 to get involved in the fire service.

They can participate in non-hazardous training, assist in first aid, help clean up after an accident, serve food and drinks at emergency scenes and join community outreach, fundraising and fire prevention programs. They can’t take part in firefighting unless they are older than 16 and have been trained.

“The programs aren’t just about recruitment,” states the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania website. “They also provide education, leadership, and an opportunity for community service.”

Elizabeth Borough and several other area departments participate in the FireVEST program, which offers scholarships for volunteers at Community College of Allegheny County and the Allegheny County Fire Academy after they serve for a commitment period.

Senior Kayleigh Hughes, a junior firefighter for Elizabeth Township Fire Department, has been involved in the fire department since she was very young.

“I used to help out with washing the truck and helping with fish fries, and it kind of got my family involved,” Hughes said. “As soon as I turned 14, I got my (state-specific modules) done, and I am still doing it. It’s a lot, but it’s worth it though.”

Hughes is also involved in an EMT class, which requires many hours of lectures and hands-on experience before they can take a test to become a junior firefighter.

Hughes also has worked at a nursing home for almost five years, works at a restaurant, is the drum major of the high school marching band and attends Steel Center for Career and Technical Education for its EMT program.

The center’s Public Safety Career and Technical program prepares individuals — under the remote supervision of physicians — to recognize, assess and manage medical emergencies in pre-hospital settings and to supervise ambulance personnel.

Becoming a dispatcher

Senior Alizabeth Leezer is an EMT dispatcher for Brownsville Ambulance Service who said she got into being a dispatcher from her mom, who is a paramedic at Brownsville.

“She always had me around that kind of environment,” Leezer said. “They were looking for people with strong communication skills, and they said I was a perfect fit. I started one year ago next month.”

Along with working 16 to 20 hours a week in eight-hour shifts, Leezer is also a competitive dancer, captain of the high school golf team, works in a lab testing waste water and is in the high school musical.

Director of the service Sherry Nicholson said she became an EMT at Brownsville while going through college. It is a paid service, and they have student observers who get experience through their programs.

“They get to have the experience of what EMS is,” Nicholson said. “They only get to learn so much in a classroom. Last year was the first year we had what we called our cadet program. We taught them about EMS and about other skills, too, to hopefully boost interest in health care.”

The plan is to continue the cadet program this year. Nicholson said they are not sure when, but they are happy to take new workers.

“We gladly take students because we know that there is a shortage in the health care field in general,” Nicholson said. “We help them either become EMS providers or we give you a stepping stone to something else.”

One big family

While Leezer, Molinaro and Hughes don’t want to go into their first responder jobs after high school, they said doing these jobs builds good life skills.

Leezer wants to be a neuropsychologist after high school, Molinaro plans to go into first responder psychology and Hughes is seeking a career in forensic analysis.

While they are helping others and there are several benefits from being first responders, they have seen the effects on their own family members who are responders.

“Sending people out and seeing them in a good mood before I send them on a call, and seeing them come back is so different,” Leezer said. “That really does affect them. It’s odd to be an outsider looking in because I am there, but I am not there with them. I am the one that is sending them out there.”

Molinaro said seeing first hand the effects on EMTs and first responders is why she wants to go into first responder “I wanted to go into the EMT world because I see the mental effects on my family so bad,” Molinaro said. “When they come home from a bad call or they are thinking about a situation over and over. It is crazy, and doesn’t get enough attention, so I definitely want to go into psychology for (my family).”

All three students said their jobs have taught them that other people are going through hardships and that they may not know their fellow neighbors and co-workers like they think they do.

Hughes encourages students and residents in the area to become first responders, but only if they are willing to put time and effort into it.

“We have people now that are involved, but are not,” Hughes said. “There are people that don’t really care. I understand if you are busy, and I’ve been busy, but some people put in no effort. Some people do it for the title. If it is something that you can dedicate yourself to, I say do it.”

They are low on volunteers everywhere, and Hughes said there are other things firefighters do besides go into burning buildings.

Leezer encourages people to appreciate their first responders, and they all urge people, no matter the age, to educate themselves by attending CPR classes, choking classes and more, which are often free at many of these fire departments and EMT services.

“Stay educated,” Molinaro said. “Be informed on how to help people even if you are not going to go for a thousand-dollar class. I did a whole presentation of how to stop the bleed and people actually learned from it. If someone doesn’t know CPR, and someone is choking, that can be between life and death.”

Molinaro likes that there is a trust in one another, that everyone knows what they are doing and everyone has each other’s back. She also enjoys the adrenaline rush.

Leezer enjoys talking to everyone, meeting new people and building relationships with her co-workers.

“I enjoy the environment, the people that you work with and the people that you meet,” Hughes added. “It’s like a big family no matter what company you are from or what department. It’s all one big family.”