The Southeastern Adams Volunteer Emergency Services, or S.A.V.E.S., issued a press release earlier this week detailing the theft by an employee from the Hanover area department.

“As a volunteer organization serving the public, we are dedicated to ensuring all funds are managed with utmost integrity,” said the company’s president, John Warner.  “Our primary obligation is to uphold the organization’s commitment to transparency and accountability to the community we serve. We were surprised and saddened by the money taken from our fire company that serves our community.”

The department’s expenses, on the other hand, were over $750,000, leaving less than half of their revenue as income. With $1.7 million in liabilities in an industry where a single piece of equipment can easily cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, it’s a razor thin margin.

S.A.V.E.S. supports their work with bingo, raffles, lotteries and golf tournaments. Like most of their peers, local fundraising is at the heart of their financial security and volunteers at the heart of those efforts. The company was able to raise $6,000 through the last 45 tickets sold in an ongoing raffle following the announcement of the theft.

Warner told The Center Square, “When an instance like this one where money is taken from the company, it leaves us having to create additional avenues to recoup those funds. We have a strong volunteer base and will recover over time.”

Departments typically receive about $15,000 in state grants annually, and Gov. Josh Shapiro has proposed funding for $30 million in competitive grants which encourage cooperation between groups.

In Pennsylvania, the vast majority of more than 2,300 fire departments operate on a volunteer basis, and the network is wearing thin. Several organizations, including S.A.V.E.S., have had to make hard choices, opting for consolidation to stay afloat.

“It starts with an admission that the current business model no longer works,” said State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook in a hearing on the issue. “So how do we drive change in a home-rule commonwealth where the law puts that responsibility on the municipality when a lot of the municipalities don’t want to make the decision?”

S.A.V.E.S. was born in 2005 out of five separate companies, Brushtown Volunteer Fire Company, Centennial Fire Company, Conewago Fire Company, and McSherrystown Steam Fire Company. The organizations had years of cooperation and four years of planning before the merger was complete.

Warner says the department has about 60 active volunteers ranging from juniors as young as 14 to senior citizens who help raise funds. According to their website, through May of 2025, the company has responded to 233 calls this year. That’s an average of less than two fire calls per day, though they say they also respond to about 700-800 medical calls per year.

It’s a model that seems to be working for S.A.V.E.S. and can serve as an example for other departments struggling to survive in a difficult climate for volunteer organizations, but many fear it’s untenable.

“Time for our members is an important commodity. Most have families of various sizes, working full time jobs, and giving whatever free time they can spare,” said Warner.

Life stresses and expenses have made it more difficult for today’s young people to commit to volunteer roles that demand so much time and can be emotionally taxing. Some have had success by incentivizing volunteering with measures like stipends and room and board.

Emergency medical services have long since switched away from a primarily volunteer model, and even they struggle to continue operations. Just like the state’s more than 1,500 townships, their methods display a patchwork of solutions, each specific to the communities they serve.