Volunteer Firefighter & EMT Process

Welcome to the recruitment page of the Hampton Division of Fire and Rescue Volunteers!

We want to thank you for your interest in applying! Our Volunteers serve a crucial role in our combination (career and volunteer) department. Volunteers have the option to serve as a firefighter, EMT; or both. Hampton's volunteer department offers enhanced training and opportunities to its volunteers not necessarily offered by other departments, such as becoming part of a specialty team. Our community is rich with history and tradition which makes serving this community an experience not many can offer.  While we work in a blended department and honoring our commitment to being transparent, those who are interested in becoming career firefighters should further investigate those opportunites on the city website (www.hampton.gov). It should be noted that volunteering for the city does not guarentee any sort of  advantage or assurance of a job with the city. 

We are always excited to add to our ranks to further serve our community. If interested in applying to become a volunteer, please complete the online application forms in their entirety. The necessary paperwork is comprised of 5 individual forms linked below in orange. Our Volunteer Advocate, Sarah Price, is your best resource to completing the process to become a volunteer for the City of Hampton. Please feel free to reach out to her at sprice@hamptonfire.org or call/text (757) 608-0055.  Her office and mailbox is located at 1300 Thomas St, Hampton, VA 23669 on the second floor in the Volunteer Recruitment office. Please bring these documents to the Volunteer Advocate or mail them to protect your personal information. Make sure you fill them out completely and to the best of your knowledge. Please note that two of the forms require a notary and one form requires a signature from your physician. If you would like to schedule a meeting either in-person or via Zoom, use this  Calendly link to do so!

The Requirements

We welcome anyone 16 and older to apply , however please know that you must be 18 years of age to participate in fire suppression. It also should be noted that a valid drivers license is required to volunteer. Please read the expected commitments below before making the steps towards applying:

"With the understanding of the serious nature of fire and rescue service, Volunteer agrees to actively participate in the delivery of emergency services as a pre-hospital care provider at the EMT-B level or above or to actively participate in the delivery of fire suppression services for the City at the level of Firefighter II or above. Volunteer agrees to provide a minimum of twenty-four (24) hours per month of volunteer service with a City volunteer fire company for a period of one and a half (1.5) years commencing from the date Volunteer is certified at the Firefighter I & II level and one and three-quarters (1.75) years from the date Volunteer is certified at the EMT-B level in consideration of valuable fire and rescue training and use of City equipment. Additionally, Volunteer agrees to abide by any and all by-laws of the company or squad he/she joins with respect to required hours and any other provisions of those by-laws. Any Volunteer who joins a company or squad with prior certification(s) will sign a volunteer company's or squad's agreement form.

In the event that the City-trained Volunteer fails to fulfill the required one and a half (1.5) year period of service for firefighters or one and three-quarters (1.75) year period for EMTs due to poor physical performance, poor attendance, unlawful or unethical conduct, violation of the City's Substance Abuse Policy, or for any other reason attributable to Volunteer, the cost of training the Volunteer (up to $1200.00 for firefighters and up to $500.00 for EMTs) must be reimbursed to the City by Volunteer within thirty (30) calendar days of Volunteer's failure to complete the period of service requirement. In lieu of a lump-sum payment, reimbursement may be made in equal monthly installments over a one (1) year period from the date of the volunteer service period ended. All training program materials, equipment, uniforms and City property must be returned to the City within thirty (30) calendar days or a charge of up to $3,000.00 will be levied for firefighter gear. Volunteer shall be required to return all training materials, equipment and uniforms that are the property of the City prior to departure.

In the event Volunteer is, or hereafter becomes, a member of the United States Armed Forces on active duty and receives change of station orders to depart from the area or is deployed away from the area for an extended period of time preventing completion of service or training, Volunteer shall not be required to reimburse the City in accordance with paragraph prior. Volunteer shall be required to return all training materials, equipment and uniforms that are the property of the City prior to departure."

The Process

Once paperwork is received, the Volunteer Advocate will contact you via email and schedule a meeting with you. Since you will be in a position of public trust, you must complete a polygraph examination. The Volunteer Advocate will also schedule a polygraph to be completed for you during this process. After you have given ALL the necessary application documents, completed finerprinting and completed certifications to the Volunteer Advocate (see list below), you will either be assigned to a company as a probationary "Candidate" or you will be assigned to the Professional Standards Branch for your Training to go through the appropriate classes and certifications required for volunteering.

For you information, these classes are generally scheduled in the evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays in addition to a full (8 hour) day on Saturdays for a total of 3 days per week.  Final schedules will be provided prior to the start of any class. Firefighter prospects will also go through our Applicant Physical Agility test (APAT).  Practice sessions and physical fitness preparations are available to allow you to prepare. In the links below, there is a document that explains the APAT and how it is “graded”. The APAT form linked below does NOT need to be turned in as part of your inital applicant paperwork. That will only be needed when your APAT is scheduled by the Advocate.

If you are already certified as a Firefighter or EMT (Basic, Advanced/Intermediate, or Paramedic), you will then be assigned to one of our 6 Volunteer Companies or 4 Volunteer Rescue Squads. Your certifications will need to be submitted and verified by the Volunteer Advocate in conjunction with the city's Recruiter.

Here is the "list" of requirements needed for the processing of each applicant before company assignment broken into 3 categories:

1. PAPERWORK

• Application
• Background Form 
• Authorization to Release Information (notarized)
• Department of Social Services form (notarized)** 
  **=NOTE THAT THIS FORM NEEDS TO BE TURNED IN TO THE ADVOCATE. No money or postage is required on behalf of the applicant 
• Medical Release (signed by physician)

2. APPLICANT TO COMPLETE IN THIER OWN TIME

• DMV records
• VA Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS) Affiliation and Fieldprint (See instructions below)
• FEMA ICS Classes 100,200,700,800 and IS-5 (links below)

3. THINGS VOLUNTEER ADVOCATE WILL SET UP FOR APPLICANT TO COMPLETE

• A polygraph 
• VA State Police fingerprinting 
• Classes that are set up for you (to include, but not limited to: HIPAA/Blood Borne Pathogens, CPR, Firefighter 1 & 2, EMT, APAT, EVOC)

For the VA OEMS Affiliation and Fieldprinting:

How to Affiliate for VA OEMS : Please refer to the document link for instructions for affliation and Fieldprinting. These instructions apply to both Virginia certified EMS providers and NON-Certified providers.

*ONLY after you create the account and are assigned an ID number for the OEMS Portal can you then proceed to scheduling the Fieldprinting. PLEASE reach out to the Volunteer Advocate to help you affiliate properly if you have questions.*

If you have been granted affliation with HDFR, then you can proceed to Fieldprinting . Please select the applicable status to your current certification level (Virginia Certified or Non-Certified Provider), then you will proceed to the instruction page on how to set up your appointment. 

FEMA Classes:

Please make sure you request a Student ID (SID) first. That link is on the left side of any of the web-based courses.

These can be done whenever works for you. They are needed before you can be put into a station.

ICS 100, 200, 700, 800

IS 5
 

The Application Paperwork

These links are files that will need to be printed and completed to turn into the Volunteer Advocate. It is advised that you read through the information prior to this section to help guide you through this process to becoming a volunteer. Notarized documents have to be turned in the hard-copy form to be accepted by the city. NO PHOTOS OF ANY DOCUMENTS OR CERTIFICATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED. All documents should be scanned and emailed or turned in by way of mail or hand delivery.
 (You must click each of the 5 links separately to access the files)

Volunteer Application

Medical Release Form

Department of Social Services (DSS) CPS Form

Authorization for Release of Information Form

Applicant Background Questionnaire

Review our Applicant Physical Ability Test (APAT) and how to prepare. If needed, peer fitness partners can be assigned to you for preparation and guidance.

This APAT form is only for an applicants' reference and does NOT need to be filled out

Please do not send off your DSS form yourself! The city takes care of this fee for you

We realize that this process may seem daunting, but we are here to help you succeed!  If at any point you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Volunteer Advocate at sprice@hamptonfire.org or call/text (757) 608-0055

If you prefer to use a website form request regarding our volunteer opportunities and process, click here to request a follow up for information.