Volunteers ready to man USO during ‘Firefighter Fridays’

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Matthew Hubby
  • 436th AW Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Members of the 436th Civil Engineering Squadron fire protection flight are volunteering their time every Friday at the United Service Organization lounge at Dover Air Force Base.

The volunteers started performing 24-hour service at the USO lounge Nov. 20 to support the schedule of the new lounge.

A pair of volunteers performs a four-hour shift starting at 8 a.m. Friday morning and continuing until 8 a.m. Saturday, said Rodney Coleman 436th CES fire protection flight deputy fire chief. The responsibilities of the volunteers are to care for those in the lounge and ensure that the lounge operates smoothly. The goal of the program is to support the USO by supplying a steady volunteer base every Friday. The fire protection flight filled their schedule with volunteers through the end of the year.

Aaron Weisenberger, 436th CES fire protection flight lead firefighter developed the 'Firefighter Friday' program. After receiving an email from the USO asking for volunteers, Mr. Weisenberger decided to create a steady sign-up sheet and handle the shifts from the fire house for Fridays.

"The USO has given us a lot of support at the firehouse for our shift and work schedules," said Mr. Weisenberger. "I thought this would be a good plan to give back to the USO for all the help they've given us. It really is a win-win situation. The USO gets the volunteers they need, and we get to walk away from the experience a little wiser as to what the USO is about."

Another driving force behind Mr. Weisenberger's decision to set up a steady stream of volunteers was the thought of what would happen to space available passengers if there were not enough volunteers available to man the lounge, he said.

"It's the simple things that you can do for people at two in the morning that really count," said Mr. Weisenberger. "The other night, one of our Airmen helped an in-transit retiree get to his hotel because he was unable to catch a cab. It's really all about the will and desire to volunteer, to get out there and help those we can. The USO supports the military, so we're going to support the USO."