Bigfork Ambulance to vote on disbanding Tuesday

A Bigfork institution that has been around for more than 30 years may be at its end.

Members of Bigfork Ambulance are scheduled to vote at a 7 p.m. meeting Tuesday, May 11, on whether or not to dissolve the organization and combine its forces and assets with the Bigfork Volunteer Fire Department.

Merging has been discussed for years as an option and was once done as a trial in 2005, but this time the stakes are more serious.

The sense of urgency comes from the fact that members are not responding to calls or signing up for call times, a problem that presents safety concerns for the community, President John Beaubien said. At a meeting Wednesday to discuss ideas, this was attributed both to political and personality conflicts as well as lack of a leadership structure and discipline.

"It's almost a hostile environment," Beaubien said.

The special meeting Wednesday was held to brainstorm ideas about what the organization should do moving forward. The only idea anyone was able to offer was a merge of the departments.

"We need some structure, we need some leadership and we need it right now," Beaubien said. "Without it, I don't see a future for Bigfork Ambulance."

Members present agreed that the organization is divided. A motion was made to disband at Wednesday's meeting, but some of those present expressed concerns that notice should be given of the vote.

"I think a determination of this weight should not be made in haste," former member Bill Taylor said. "I think there should be public notice. All voting members should be noticed. I believe that may be the outcome, but if you're going to (vote tonight), it is in fact perpetuating the problems that exist within the organization right now."

CAUSES

Throughout the country organizations are really struggling to get volunteers, fire chief Wayne Loeffler said. The fire department has between 28 and 32 members, a number that has held relatively steady over the past several years with gains and losses balancing out, Loeffler said.

But, volunteers are becoming harder to recruit and those who are members do not have as much time to volunteer. The ambulance has about 20 active members, which is down slightly, Beaubien said.

The leadership for Bigfork Ambulance is volunteer based and Beaubien says his position as president does not carry much merit or weight to discipline or keep people in line the way a fire chief does.

People want to join organizations that are successful, not ones that are struggling, which adds more complications to an already falling sense of volunteerism.

"Everyone wants to join a winning team, but your ship is sinking right now," Mary Granger of Lakeside QRU said at the meeting.

Several people noted that whether the merge or dissolve happens or not, nothing will be resolved unless attitudes causing some of the problems and internal conflicts change.

"As much as I love you guys, shame on you," Granger said. "What you are doing is damaging. It's like cancer working though."

Long-time member Doug Smith, who helped start the organization and is now retired, said there was a time when Bigfork Ambulance set the precedence and had a high reputation throughout the Flathead Valley. That is no longer the case, he said.

"You need to take all your differences and set them aside," Smith told those present at Wednesday's meeting.

Member Marv Gielen said he was discouraged from joining the ambulance two years ago, but did anyway. He said he has people who are listening to the radios regularly ask why people aren't responding.

"What's that saying to the people of this community?" Gielen said.

Loeffler said that being in the fire hall, which the two organizations share, he's heard a lot of the infighting.

"We need to leave the baggage at the door," Loeffler said. "I'm tired of it. It needs to stop folks."

NEXT STEPS

In the meantime before Tuesday's vote, Bigfork fire volunteers and staff who crossover in both organizations will help with call times and response.

Beaubien said he would call all members to inform them of Tuesday's meeting. He said he would meet with some members Thursday and Monday to work on a transitional plan and presentation for the meeting.

The Bigfork Rural Fire District Board will have to agree to accept Bigfork Ambulance as well. A special meeting of the board has been called for 6:30 p.m. Monday, May 10, to discuss the issue.

If things do not change with Bigfork Ambulance, the fire department is prepared to pursue a medical non-transport license that would allow members to provide medical aid at the scene, Loeffler said. But, if the ambulance members vote to dissolve, Bigfork fire will seek a medical transportation license so that the community won't have to rely on services from Lakeside or Evergreen for an ambulance ride.

WHAT IT MEANS

The two departments agreed to merge once before and did so for about 18 months and then split again due to differences in opinion as well as ramifications of combining the two that weren't fully understood at the time. That time the merge wasn't official, or legal, members noted.

In order to legally merge, Bigfork Ambulance needs to agree to dissolve and file an application with the state. As a non-profit 501(c)3, all of its assets have to go to other charitable organizations. Bigfork fire is not a non-profit, but the assets still possibly could be transferred. Government entities, which Bigfork fire is through Flathead County, can be considered exempt organizations for the receipt of assets as long as they are being used for a public purpose, county deputy attorney Tara Fugina said. However, that all depends on how the non-profit was set up and how it's dissolved, she said. An attorney will need to be involved in the process.

The ambulance runs on charges from calls and transports as well as donations, while the fire district operates on tax dollars. Those would remain separate budgets, also because that way both will still be eligible for grants, Loeffler said.

The ambulance does currently have three paid employees. Budgets would need to be looked at but Loeffler didn't immediately anticipate eliminating any jobs, he said.

The problem with numbers and time constraints for volunteers will be in some ways solved by the merge. The fire department membership has already had a goal of having all members become certified first responders within the next two years.

About 45 to 50 percent of the members of each crossover and serve in both organizations. For them, that has meant double the meetings, double the training and double the hours. If the organizations were together, that may reduce the required time commitments and free up more time for response, members said.

Loeffler said he was fine either way Bigfork Ambulance decided to go.

"I want whatever's best for this community. That's what we're here for," Loeffler told the ambulance members. "If you decide to go another way, we're still here to help you."

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