John F Bendick

When was the last time you told the dispatcher your company wasn't responding becacuse of weather conditions? Almost all of those other jobs can be suspended when weather condition are unfavorable. Think about when material is falling off a highrise in the middle of the night or a sand hog is trapped in the hole who is the first on the scene to help. All these jobs are important Working together we all can make this a better world.

Yes, we were all volunteers. In the mid fifty’s the federal government started a program in which it offered training and equipment to start a rescue service. At this time it was not terrorism but the fear of a nuclear attack. The City of Yonkers applied to be part of this program. My father John A. Bendick was appointed Chief of Rescue Service. It was his responsibility to recruit and train civilians in emergency operations as a supplement to the fire dept. Many of these teams came from veterans organizations such as the American Legion. Over the years with the declining threat of a nuclear attack, the mission was changed to more of a local response to emergencies. Being that my father had a very special relationship with the Yonkers Fire Dept., they were allowed to respond and assist at multiple alarms as long as they did not interfere or perform any fire fighting operations. This was also with the un-official approval of the YFD Mutual Aid association. This was quite an accomplishment as this was about the time that Tom Flynn was elected President of the Union. In my opinion, he was the man, who with some progressive leaders in the Dept. started the climb from a great Dept. to one of the most premier ones in the country. From a dept. riding with 3 men, and 1 acting Lt. with old equipment, to one with an officer and 3 FF’s on a state of art apparatus. They also have support equipment to rival any dept. Going to fires and having the rescue trucks quartered in firehouses allowed me to enter the world of the fire service at an early age. This started a lifelong love affair with the fire service. Many of us went on to become firefighters and policemen. For myself, I went on to become Captain of Engine 23 in the FDNY and retired with 37 years. During these fires, I saw some of the greatest firemen in operation. To answer your question, they are still in operation. How active they are, I don’t know. And yes they still are getting cast me downs.