From teenagers to retirees, there was a great turnout last weekend when the Rural Fire Service (RFS) in the Illawarra's northern suburbs opened their doors for a recruitment drive blitz.

As reported in The Illawarra Flame last month, the ageing population in our north, and within our RFS teams necessitated a big push for new members.

Six brigades from Austinmer to Waterfall are on the search for new blood to replace their retiring team members. Last Saturday there was a steady stream of people enquiring about life in the RFS.

One of the first potential new recruits to attend the Helensburgh fire station was Liam Halls-Smith, who thinks volunteering might be a valuable contribution to make when he's not teaching at Stanwell Park.

The RFS is 'like another family'

Liam was greeted by Karen Elward, a veteran of 34 years with the RFS, having joined up as a teenager.

"It's like another family," Karen said. "Dad was involved and I guess I followed his lead. I've made so many good friends over the years."

Also attending Helensburgh, Desley Hennessy is "looking to fill a gap in my life" after many years volunteering with the local soccer club.

"Quite simply, I feel like I want to do something to help the community," Desley said.

She was briefed on the range of roles available with Helensburgh RFS by the brigade captain, Marc Rayner.

"We really want a diverse variety of people in our team," Marc said. "Everyone has different personalities and different approaches which is good.

"We ask people who are interested to complete the membership process online. As part of the process there are police checks, because we are a government agency, and in the end, it goes to the brigade for a vote.

"We've never had anyone knocked back," Marc was quick to add.

He said training for a role with the RFS takes about six weeks, meaning the newest recruits can be ready for the job by the next summer bushfire season.

Motivated by the horror 2001 bushfires

At Stanwell Park, a pair of teenagers were bright and early seeking more information about the RFS cadet program, having read about the recruitment drive in the August edition of The Flame.

George Westwood said he joined the brigade after the frightening 2001 bushfires ripped through the northern escarpment. "It turned the sky black, we all headed to the beach where embers were falling. That's what really prompted me to join."

Nina Kaerkaes attended the Stanwell Park brigade with her two-year-old son, Luka. "I'm new to the area and I'm really just interested in what they do here."

It was a similar story for Cory Wilson and his partner Hayley Charlton, who received a good briefing on life in the RFS from senior deputy captain, Paul Kjeldsen and Tony Miller.

"I'm a construction project manager. I'm new to town and interested to get amongst it," Cory said. "Mechanical pumping, that's my game, so it seems a good match."

Matt and Karen Hope, moved to Stanwell Park six years ago and for Matt it's about giving back to the community. His varied career has included working in mine rescue teams in Western Australia, and he feels many of the skills he learned there are transferable.

'What's not to love about it?'

An important part of the weekend recruitment drive was learning lessons from long-time members of the RFS.

Will Lee, aged 74, is one of the longest serving RFS members in the state, having clocked up 55 years and counting. Will is a proud member of the Austinmer brigade, which he describes as "the best of the best".

"What's not to love about it?" Will said. "The job of an old firefighter is to teach young firefighters how to become an old firefighter."

There was plenty of interest at the Austinmer recruitment morning in the shed sitting under the escarpment.

The crew was still in the process of debriefing after attending a car fire the previous night on Bulli Pass.

A way to build skills and confidence

Mother and son, Michelle and Joel from Thirroul, seemed eager to learn everything they needed to know about life in the RFS.

Joel, aged 20, is just the right age to start with the RFS, according to the Austinmer team. He's studying environmental science at UOW and is keen to find a new interest that has meaning.

"It would be an incredible way for him to build his skills and his confidence," Michelle said.

Recently retired urban planner Mike Dove, from Coledale, says he always thought he would sign up "and now is the time to give back".

"I'm conscious of what's happening in the world around us with climate change and I expect we will be having more, and larger floods, which will mean the need to help out with storm damage," Mark said.

He was receiving a briefing from retired metallurgist Ros Christie, who moved to the area two years ago after serving for many years with the Greenwell Point brigade.

Amongst the younger potential recruits, Tom Mott, a disability support worker from Thirroul, felt it might be the right time to join up with the Austinmer team.

Hoping visitors will follow through and sign up

The RFS Group Captain for Illawarra-Sutherland, Craig Robertson, said he was very happy with the public response to the recruitment drive. "We had good numbers through the doors and now those people who turned up have gone home to think about whether the RFS is for them. We will now have to wait to see how many follow through."

Craig said he was particularly pleased that a number of teenagers showed interest. "This could have a flow on effect, if they do sign on and talk to their mates who may follow."

He said it's not too late for people who were unable to visit a local RFS station in person last weekend. "They can drop into their local station when they're open this weekend or contact us at Illawarra-Sutherland base."

The next big event for the region's RFS teams is the "Get Ready" weekend, which will be held on 21-22 September. It's an awareness campaign encouraging property owners to prepare for bushfires. Many brigades will also have activities for kids.

The official start of the next bushfire season is now just four weeks away.