In 1941, twenty-three men took a series of First-Aid courses under the guidance of one Dr. Harry C. Sayer. This was the beginning of The Corps. Although few documents remain from those early days, several things are clear. In the first place, The Corps serviced a much larger area than it does today and drew volunteers—many of whom would become trustees—from equally far afield. Its reach included places like Vernon, Florida, Pine Island, Chester, New Hampton, Greenwood Lake, Upper Greenwood Lake, Highland Lakes, and parts of Monroe. 

Second, The Corps quickly saw its purposes met. Prior to its formation, sick and injured people would have to find help from wherever they could to reach medical services. Civilian trucks and cars had to suffice for emergency transportation. The Corps first emergency call came on June 24th, 1942. By August of the same year, The Corps had logged its 22nd, putting their 1941 Buick Ambulance to good use.

The modest garage under the Old Town Hall sufficed as The Corps’ first home and Ambulance bay. Supplies were stored near the building’s boiler and the garage would double as meeting space with the Ambulance backed out when necessary to make room. When a second Ambulance was added, it was garaged at either the Opera House or Stanley Building, now known as the Demarest building. The advantage of this was that it put an ambulance on either side of the railroad tracks. Later, a garage at St. Anthony’s Hospital was used. Then a local, named Tom Welling, donated land for the construction of a building to house the growing equipment and fleet of the Warwick Valley Ambulance Service.

At The Corps’ inception in 1942, emergency communication involved technology already commonly used at the time. A person in need of help would call the operator. The operator would in turn put the call through to the Captain, who also served as Dispatcher. The very first Captain of the WVAS was Fred Ferricks. He owned a department store in what is now called the Gilvens Building. People recall Captain Ferricks taking calls both from the store and from home. He would then call two crew members and convey the relevant information. Crew members, themselves, came from a variety of backgrounds. Some owned businesses, others had farms. And still others worked for local businesses and industries. 

Even the Mayor of the village served as a riding member of the WVAS at one point. Which made for a funny story when the Mayor, one of the few people in town who wore a necktie, was helping transport a mentally agitated woman to the Psychiatric Hospital. The woman allegedly grabbed the Mayor by his necktie and pulled it so tight his face turned red. Thankfully, his fellow Corps member pried the patient’s fingers from the tie. They had a laugh afterward, when they thought of a fantastic headline for the paper: “Mayor strangled by irate citizen.” 

Whatever their vocation, a call from the Captain required immediate response. Business owners and managers from the lumberyard, the railroad, the feed store, and telephone company knew part of community life meant letting volunteers in their employ leave at a moment’s notice. This culture of consideration is still reflected in some local business practices today.

Fred Ferricks continued on as Dispatcher, even after Bill Miller became Captain. The next Dispatcher was a fondly remembered woman by the name of Conklin “Lil” Smith.  By her time, people could directly dial an emergency number that would ring both the phone at her house and her place of employment. She would then call the available volunteers.

CB radios had also come into use by then and were installed in each Ambulance. A few volunteers even had them in their homes and family vehicles. Later, as volunteers and the WVAS both became busier, several beepers were made available to on-call Corps members. Their adoption was not without reservation, however. Lil Smith was reluctant to page anyone, due to the ten-cent phone charge it incurred. But the added benefit of her reluctance was a layer of information simple text could not express. Some members still recollect being able to tell the seriousness of a call by the tone of her voice.

After Lil Smith retired, Lloyds Paging Service was employed as dispatcher. Then Cullins Communications. Finally, with the change to a county-wide 911 service, WVAS volunteers were and continue to be dispatched from a county emergency center which alerts volunteers via beeper.

Today, a mobile phone and broadband radio is part of the WVAS’ standard equipment. These communication devices have allowed for timely information to be passed between from ambulance to the hospital, and dispatcher to police, as well as other responders.

When WVAS began, two First-Aid certified members sufficed for a crew. Today, however, all response crews have at minimum an EMT, and a Driver trained and certified in First-Aid and CPR. Crew sizes range anywhere from two to five members, sometimes including Junior Corps observers. Along with crew size, Corps member duties have changed over the years. EMTs are now trained to take blood pressure, heart rate, assess for a variety of symptoms, and note relevant medical history from conscious patients. All members are trained and certified in First-Aid and CPR at minimum.

Although First-Aid-trained responders do not perform the same duties as their EMT compatriots, they might assist with setting a broken limb, setting up an oxygen tent in the hospital, or be called on to continue care for a patient beyond the ER. On one memorable occasion, a member was called on to assist a mother who had given birth mere moments after exiting an elevator at St. Anthony’s maternity ward! Our part in caring for a patient ends when he or she is safely situated on an emergency room bed.

Our approach to liability has also had to adapt. For example, record keeping used only to consist of a logbook kept in each Ambulance. The details for each entry were basic: mileage, which members were responding, time, date, and location. That all changed after WVAS began receiving calls from lawyers who wanted to know precisely what was done for certain patients. Our current practice involves filling out a NYS approved Patient Care Report (PCR) for each call, even when medical care is refused.

There have also been changes to the services we provide. We still transport non-ambulatory people to and from St. Anthony’s and other area hospitals. But up until the early 1990’s, The Corps made regular trips to such far flung places as Buffalo, NY, East Orange, NJ, NYC, Washington, D.C., and Newport News, VA. We still maintain a loan-closet with items like shower benches, crutches, and wheelchairs. But there was a time when we maintained and delivered electric hospital beds, large oxygen tanks, and oxygen tents to patients convalescing at home. WVAC even had a separate truck to transport the equipment!

Another notable addition was the inclusion of women as regular riding members in the 1980’s. Up until then, only a few women connected to The Corps had been allowed to help in any capacity—notably Jean and Fran Batz, Alice Boyle, Ester Rader, and Doris Minturn. They would sometimes ride along for extended transports of female patients. By the early 2000’s, however, WVAS had eleven female members who were certified EMTs and nine who were trained in First-Aid.

WVAS started out with twenty-three First-Aid trained volunteers. This number rose to fifty-nine fully certified EMTs by 2003, including members of both sexes and a range of ages. In fact, we have an active Junior Corps for interested youth, some of whom become full-fledged riding members when they turn 18.

A final change was in clothing. The Corps had no uniform at first. That is, until sometime in the 1960’s. Apparently, a member who worked as a landscape contractor kept showing up, “covered from the top of his head to the tip of his toes in filth.” The answer to that problem was a new Corps dress-code and wardrobe: white cotton overalls. Although the white was more presentable and professional, it proved impractical for a number of reasons. The next iteration of the uniform was bright orange made of a cotton-polyblend. This change was beneficial for nighttime visibility, but the uniform proved unpopular. Today, our uniform color is green. Members are issued a jumpsuit, raincoat, winter coat, polo shirt, and tee shirt.

One tradition that has remained with us for years, however, is the WVAS annual dinner. It was first held in honor of the WVAS by the Ladies Auxiliary of the American Legion. The gymnasium that once stood behind the 1810 House served as the first venue. The gymnasium is no longer here, but the annual dinner is. It continues to be a cherished time to relax and socialize.

Finally, and staying true to our roots, the Warwick Community Ambulance Service continues offering First Aid training to people in our community.