MSFA Weekly Report for County Associations and Partners
PDF: MSFA Weekly Report week ending 1.13.23
An Important Letter from President Kurtz:
January 9, 2023
First, I would like to thank all of the MSFA member departments for their patience as the MSFA leadership worked through the very important initiative to update the name of the Association to be more inclusive of our membership.
As you all know, I appointed a Name Change Taskforce last year to look into this initiative and what we would need to address in order to be successful.
Taskforce Chair Teresa Crisman and her team worked diligently to prepare last year’s voting and although we faced some challenges and the change did not move forward, the team decided to send out a survey to the voting delegation to get a real-time opinion on the proposed change.
As a result of the survey, the majority of the membership that participated in the survey stated that they favored a change that would reflect the make-up of the membership that the MSFA is charged to represent. As such, the following two names received the most favorable recommendations:
-The Maryland State Firefighter’s Association
-The Maryland State Fire/EMS Association
It has also been indicated that the majority of the membership felt it important to keep the “MSFA” acronym so in the case of either of these two names being approved, the MSFA acronym and logo would remain what it is today.
Over the course of the coming weeks, I look forward to open discussions on the proposal of these two names and moving them forward to be voted on in
June at our annual convention.
Respectfully submitted,
Benjamin W. Kurtz, President
Maryland State Firemen’s Association
National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Dial 988
2022 Tax Forms Now Available: For the newest tax subtraction form, letter from the Incentives Committee Chair Rick Hemphill, and tax rules for 2022, please visit:
https://www.msfa.org/packages/tax–incentive–documents/
SAVE THE DATES :
January 28, 2023 Mark G. Falkenhan Operation Leadership Seminar; Carroll County PSTC
February 11-12, 2023 Executive Committee Meeting, Prince Frederick VFD
March 8-11, 2023 Miltenberger Emergency Services Seminar
March 12-17, 2023 Staff And Command Course; Annapolis, MD. Register at www.mfri.org.
March 25, 2023 Public Fire and Life Safety Educator Seminar; MFRI HQ College Park
March 30-31, 2023 1st Responder Conference on Mental Health and Wellness; Ocean City
MSFA 2nd Vice President Candidate Position for 2023 Now Open:
If you or someone you know is interested in running for the Office of 2nd Vice President of the MSFA in 2023, please submit a formal interest letter to the Office of the Secretary.
MSFA 2023 Convention and Conference: Planning for the 2023 MSFA Convention and Conference is officially underway! The first meeting of the 2023 Convention Planning Committee was held and each division of the committee reported out. -Submissions of department credential forms began on January 1st at https://convention.msfa.org/registration/department–credentials/
-Have a class you would like to teach at the beach? Classes will be limited so get your RFP submitted ASAP. The deadline to submit in March 1, 2023. The online RFP form is live at https://convention.msfa.org/registration/instructor–proposal/
-Would you like to honor a member of your department that has passed away in 2022? Fill out the Joint Memorial Service Request Form by February 1, 2023. https://convention.msfa.org/registration/department–credentials/joint–memorial–service/
-Program Book ads are now available for purchase online
https://convention.msfa.org/sponsors/advertising–opportunities/application/
MSFA Mentorship Program Roll Out and Casting Call: Our SAFER Regional Coordinators are excited to bring the new MSFA Mentorship Program to your regions! Mentorship is a vital tool to build relationships between members, keeping your recruitment and retention efforts healthy and strong, but it isn’t always easy creating a program from scratch, Let us help! If your department would be interested in hosting a training, please contact Heather Gorski at hgorski@msfa.org to coordinate.
We are also looking for those that have had positive experiences with a mentorship program, either formal or informal, in your departments to share your experience. Individuals who have been mentors, mentees, as well as someone who has been integral in the development of a successful program are asked to please send Executive Director Loveless your contact information at kloveless@msfa.org and SAFER Marketing Manager Stephen Jenkins will reach out to coordinate.
Mental Health Awareness Podcast:
MSFA PP Dave Lewis shares his recent podcast on mental health issues with Dave Denniston (McNeil and Company) https://www.buzzsprout.com/1968738/11751378.
Many departments are embracing a safe and mental health-aware culture in their stations and the
MSFA Mental Health Taskforce is here to support you. If your department would like to host a mental health awareness presentation, please reach out to Teresa Crisman at tacrisman@hotmail.com or PP Dave Lewis at dlewis533@comcast.net for content that is appropriate for your members.
MSFA Committee Notices:
The VCAF Committee has announced that the application period for 2023 is now open. Please visit the VCAF homepage on the MSFA website at https://www.msfa.org/committees/vcaf/ . All of the information you need to begin the application process is available on the page.
The Volunteer Trumpet is getting a new look and the committee is looking for content! Do you have a new rig you would like to show off? Want to highlight a member of your department? Have important news to share? What better way than to put an article in the Volunteer Trumpet? Message Chair Jonathan Dayton at jonathan.m.dayton@gmail.com to submit your content today!
The MSFA Rural Water Supply Committee is looking for departments to host a drill in early 2023! The last few drills have been a huge success with the participation of over 15 departments. Contact Committee Chair Steve Barry at Barry_Steven@comcast.net for more information.
The Scholarship Committee is asking for leads on potential scholarships that could be offered to our membership. Chair Lynn Hawkins is in the process of updating the information on the committee page on the MSFA.org website that will include a new updated application as well as resources for available scholarships available to public safety personnel. An announcement will be made shortly once these updates are posted. Scholarships are a great retention tool so please encourage your members to apply!
The MSFA Cancer Committee has announced its 2023 Walk of Hope in Annapolis which will be held on Sunday, April 23, 2023. They hope to have an excellent turn out again next spring!
The MSFA Ways and Means Committee reminds all departments that the 2023 Convention $10,000 Raffle tickets have been distributed to all Executive Committee members. Please be sure to contact them to get your tickets!
If any Committee wishes to share information via this weekly report including meeting dates and times, please submit it to Executive Director Kate Loveless at KLoveless@msfa.org by the Wednesday of each week for Friday distribution.
If you are interested in being on an MSFA committee, please visit the MSFA website and submit the following interest form: https://www.msfa.org/committees/interest–form/
If your department has an upcoming event, please post the information to the MSFA Information Sharing page on Facebook. The page grows each week and it is a useful tool to help advertise your events. You can also share important information and milestones on the MSFA website by submitting an announcement form online at
https://www.msfa.org/about/news/announcements/submit–announcement/
MFRI is Now Hiring Instructors:
MFRI is looking for instructors to teach Fire, EMT, Rescue, HazMat, Industrial, ALS, and the Simulation Center. Contact MFRI Director of Operations Steve Cox at scox@mfri.org for more information.
If you have any questions, please reach out to your county Executive Committee members:
| Allegany/Garrett; Tim Dayton | daytontd22@gmail.com | |
| Anne Arundel; Ron Block | blockntackle@comcast.net | |
| Baltimore; Doug Simpkins, Jr. | dougsimpkins350@gmail.com | |
| Calvert/Charles/St. Mary’s; Randy Smith | firehouseblues56@yahoo.com | |
| Carroll/Howard; Theresa Collins | collins3187@gmail.com | |
| Dorchester/Talbot; Bob Phillips | rfcchief48@gmail.com | |
| Frederick/Washington; Chip Jewell | cjecc171@comcast.net | |
| Harford/Cecil; PP Steve Cox | msfa96@gmail.com | |
| Montgomery; Buddy Sutton | b.sutton@ldvfd.org | |
| Prince George’s; Lee Lutz | leelutz49@gmail.com |
Queen Anne’s/Kent/Caroline; Robbie Blackiston t.r.blackiston@gmail.com
Somerset/Wicomico/Worchester; PP Roger Steger rsteger21842@gmail.com
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