Kids and adults competed in this year’s Fireman’s Competition at the Lebanon Area Fair on Sunday, running obstacle courses, chucking traffic cones, and seeing how fast they could get into firefighter garb.
For the obstacle course, kids had to go through different scenarios firefighters might experience while on the scene. They might crawl through small spaces to rescue people or put out a fire, step carefully through treacherous environments, and of course, point a hose at a flame.
David Gill, a firefighter with the Independent Fire Company in Lebanon, said he’s been volunteering to help run the competition for several years now, but has been competing for over a decade.
Gill said the ultimate goal of the competition isn’t to highlight the firefighters throughout Lebanon County — it’s to get the kids involved and interested in joining the firefighting forces.
“The main reason I partake and encourage this is for the little ones, because this is a memory, and when they turn 14, they can become a junior firefighter somewhere within this county,” he said.
A few of his own kids competed, collecting medals and chocolate bars throughout the afternoon.
Gill said firefighting is often a family tradition. In his family, he said his mother is a fire cop, he’s a firefighter, and now some of his kids are interested in continuing the legacy.
And this is especially important considering the national staffing concerns volunteer fire companies are experiencing.
“Our fire service is dying. We get them involved now, they’re going to see that red truck and think, ‘I want to do that,’” Gill said. “We’ve got to build tomorrow’s service, because if not, we’re going to a regional department, and our taxes are going to go up.”
He noted that some areas might have the call volume to support their own services, but there are some small municipalities that would pay for a full-time service to cover a few dozen calls a year.
The U.S. Fire Administration website says Pennsylvania has 1,770 registered fire departments. Pennsylvania has the third-largest percentage of registered volunteer and mostly volunteer fire departments in the country, at 96.5%.
“The kids are the important thing — I can’t stress that enough,” he said.
The kid competitors gather at a table to collect their medals after competing. (William Trostel) 
Kids compete in a cone throwing competition, where they try to get close to a designated point in the grass. (William Trostel) A young competitor aims at the fake fires during his run through the obstacle course. (William Trostel) Firefighters from around the county compete in the cone throwing competition. (William Trostel) Firefighters from around the county compete in the cone throwing competition. (William Trostel) A firetruck sits on the field to supply water for the challenges. (William Trostel) The firefighter trophies could be earned through the competition. (William Trostel) The bronze, silver, and gold medals sit, ready to be handed out for each competition. (William Trostel) A firetruck sits on the field to supply water for the challenges. (William Trostel)
Here are the winners for each competition, with last names provided if given.
Kids Obstacle Course (ages 1 to 8)
- 1st place: Malayna
- 2nd place: Owen Behm
- 3rd place: Lilah Gill
Kids Obstacle Course (ages 9 to 13)
- 1st place: Adam Heath
- 2nd place: Sadie Jenkins
- 3rd place: Gianna Allston
Adult Cone Chucking (ages 18 and up)
- 1st place: David Gill
- 2nd place: Josh Botsford
- 3rd place: Jordan Musser
Kids Cone Chucking (ages 5 to 8)
- 1st place: Lilah Gill
- 2nd place: Reya Anderson
- 3rd place: Zoey Heath
Kids Cone Chucking (ages 9 to 13)
- 1st place: Adam Heath
- 2nd place: Sebastian Ilus
- 3rd place: Sadie Jenkins
Kids Cone Chucking (ages 14 to 17)
- 1st place: Kaja Didericksen
- 2nd place: Angelica Bautista
- 3rd place: Dana
Adult Couple Relay (ages 18 and up)
- 1st place: Owen Binkley and Zach Buvoltz, team name “North Annville FD”
- 2nd place: Brayden Travis and David Gill
Adult Bucket Brigade (ages 18 and up)
- 1st place: Owen Binkley and Zach Buvoltz, team name “North Annville FD”
- 2nd place: Brayden Travis and David Gill
Adult Bucket Brigade (ages 14 to 17)
- 1st place: Zach Buvoltz and Frankie Morgan, team name “North Annville FD”
- 2nd place: Kaja Didericksen and Angelica Bautista, team name “KD & AB”
Kids Bucket Brigade (ages 9 to 13)
- 1st place: Gianna Allston and Malayna, team name “Team Sisters”
- 2nd place: Sadie Jenkins and Adam Heath, team name “Best Cousins”
Kids Flame Firefighter (ages 4 and under)
- 1st place: Liam
- 2nd place: Lillyanna Rhoads
- 3rd place: Caleb Gill
Kids Flame Firefighter (ages 5 to 8)
- 1st place: Malayna
- 2nd place: Zoey Heath
- 3rd place: Lilah Gill
Kids Flame Firefighter (ages 9 to 13)
- 1st place: Adam Heath
- 2nd place: Sebastian Ilus
- 3rd place: Gianna Allston
Adult Quick Dress (ages 14 and up)
- 1st place: Jordan Musser
- 2nd place: Josh Botsford
- 3rd place: Brayden Travis
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