New scholarships for Firefighter/EMT/Paramedic funded by Green Township’s Mack Fire
President Monica Posey and Chief of Advancement Elliott Ruther announced the new Mack Fire scholarship at the Scholarship Recognition Event on Oct. 25, 2018.
Members of Mack Fire, Inc., including former and current Green Township firefighters and EMT’s, donated $50,000 to Cincinnati State to establish the Mack Fire Scholarship Fund for students from Green Township who are seeking a degree in Fire Service Technology or EMS Paramedic Science.
Students can apply for the new scholarship– and many other institutionally-funded scholarships– using the online scholarship application portal.
A group of individuals formed the Mack Volunteer Fire Department in the 1940’s to help meet civil defense needs in Green Township.
Mack Fire no longer operates as an active fire department. According to Mack Fire president Ed Wortman (on the left in the photo), its members decided to donate funds to Cincinnati State to “give back to Green Township by encouraging young men and women to go into the fire and emergency medical services.”
“Mack Fire’s generosity will change the lives of students who will save the lives of others,” said Dr. Monica Posey. “It is a wonderful gift and we thank them.”
About half of Mack Fire’s gift will create six scholarships of $2,000 per year for two years, for new or current students from Green Township seeking a degree in Fire Service Technology or EMS Paramedic Science.
Non-Green Township residents may also qualify if they have been employed by the Green Township Fire Department for one year or more, or if they are a direct descendent of a member or past member of Mack Fire.
The remainder of the new fund will form the beginning of an endowment for future scholarships.
Green Township is the third largest township in Ohio. Its fire and EMS services now average more than 21 runs per day, which puts a strain on staffing.
“Communities throughout the country are having trouble getting young people to enter the fire and EMS services, and we are no exception,” said Green Township Fire Chief Scott Souders.
“The new scholarships will help our department develop a stronger recruitment program that we can present to high school students, before they are seniors, to get them thinking about their futures.”
High schools serving Green Township residents include Oak Hills, Colerain, Diamond Oaks, Western Hills, Elder, St. Xavier, La Salle, and Mercy McAuley.
Mack Fire is the second scholarship fund formed in 2018 to support Fire and EMS training at Cincinnati State. In June, Harold Thomas established the Stephen M. Ashbrock Fire and EMS Endowed Scholarship Fund.
For more information about Cincinnati State’s Fire/Emergency Services programs or the scholarships, contact Fire/EMS Program Chair Thomas (Ryan) Mayfield, at (513) 569-1294 or thomas.mayfield@cincinnatistate.edu.
(Article by Richard Curtis, Interim Media/Communications Coordinator, Cincinnati State)