Volunteer Ambulance Service Expanding in Pennsylvania

At a time when money woes are driving some volunteer ambulance services out of business, the Jefferson Hills Area Ambulance Association is steadily growing.

"We service about 25,000 people, and we get an average of 2,800 calls a year," said Douglas Pascoe, the association's executive director.

"We service Jefferson Hills, Elrama, Forward Township, Union Township and West Elizabeth."

To accommodate its growth, the association plans to open a two-story, 8,500-foot building at 2121 Century Drive in Jefferson Hills on Saturday. It has been located at 575 Coal Valley Road.

"It's a very central location that will allow us room for growth," said Linda Carlson, president of the association. "We've been an ambulance service for 30 years and have never owned our own building. We've always rented.

"We hope that this central location will allow us to have our own identity and bring us more volunteers."

The first floor will include administrative and billing offices, while the second floor will house an emergency control center and sleeping quarters.

Although the service is moving to a new location, both Carlson and Pascoe want people to know that the level of service to its five communities will not change.

"Ambulances will come to the new building, get their daily training orders and depart to the places they served before we moved," Pascoe said.

The new building cost about $888,000, Pascoe said. The money came from the organization's budget, fundraisers and a bank loan. The association had been raising money for about five years.

"We set a goal of five years, and we were very frugal with our budget, and we had community support," he said.

A dedication ceremony will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at the new building. For more information or to volunteer, call 412-469-7664.

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