Barbara Lawlor, Nederland.  As the summer heats up, so does the number of emergency calls, wildland fire calls, accidents and lost hikers, fallen climbers and the possibility of flooding after a thunderstorm. Our local volunteer fire departments are called out to check smoke sightings all summer long as lightning strikes clobber tinder dry forest floors and dead standing pines.

This summer the Nederland Fire Protection District is concerned about the recent loss of a number of volunteers who have moved out of the area, taking their experience and dedication with them. They leave a hole in the team that the NFPD chief, Rick Dirr, is looking to fill with new recruits.

He shows a picture of nine firefighters who participated in the 2013 Memorial Stair Climb in Denver on Sept. 11, saying only four of them are still here. The others have left or are leaving to live their dream elsewhere.

Molly and Mark Welch met during their time with the NFPD. Molly signed up in 2006 and became an EMT and a high-volume responder. Mark, an arborist, moved to Nederland from Tennessee, bringing with him strong chain saw skills. Together they formed a strong wildland fire team. After marrying in 2011, they lived in Eldora where they anchored and revitalized the fire station.

The couple left in the last month when Mark received a job offer in Seattle, where they will live on a boat.

Chief Dirr says "It is is exciting to see people we care about living their dream, but their absence creates a big void in the department."

Matt and Katie Watson are also moving on after being a part of the NFPD family since 2009. Both firefighters were paramedics and became a great husband and wife team. Matt was hired as a career staff member; on his shifts, Molly would stay at the station keeping him company,  creating a two-paramedic on-call crew.

Dirr says the irony is that Matt had been with Flight for Life and is now returning to that calling in Durango, restless for the higher-adrenaline action. The two couples moved out collectively and the department is left short handed.

Four newcomers have about nine months in so far, but Dirr says recruits stop being a liability after about a year. To ably function on the job takes about two years of training and experience. He is looking for people willing to do the job for a while, to commit to being a member of the Ned team.

In the past year, Nederland volunteers responded to 432 calls, about one and a half per day. A handful of regularly active members will show up; late at night or on weekends, maybe only two will be available.

The big issue, says Dirr, is finding people who will put in the time, which has an impact on one's family, one's career and one's recreational pursuits. "There is some degree of sacrifice involved, but serving others is the payoff."

Volunteers must be reasonably physically fit and must be the kind of people he wouldn't hesitate to leave his children, house, or pets with. They should not feel that using recreational drugs is more important than showing up at an emergency ready and able to function without impairment.

"We build lifelong friendships in life-threatening circumstances," says Dirr. "Volunteering for the fire department is not like volunteering for the library. We get to do extraordinary things that are incredibly rewarding. Being on the department has reshaped my sense of self."

Anyone interested in finding out more about becoming a NFPD volunteer can call 303-258-9161 for an application.

Members of the NFPD, as well as Timberline Fire Protection District, Indian Peaks, and Sugarloaf Fire Protection Districts, will gather at the field next to the Nederland Post Office after the parade on the Fourth of July to participate in the annual NFPD Bucket Brigade picnic and water hose fights that bring out the summer child in our firefighters. It is a great spectator sport with a great look at how much fun adults can have trying to move a barrel along a rope by pointing a high power hose at it.

It's all part of the job.

Last year, Timberline claimed the title and Ned firefighters are eager to put an end to the Gilpin County bragging rights. Come cheer for your local firefighters.