Friday, February 15, 2013

Growing Pains

March 1st, 2013 will be a big day for my department. This day will be the first shift for the paid members of our department. We have had an all volunteer department since 1977. A combination department is something we never thought would happen. We have worked for years to get paid members and have always been shut down.
So what now? Are things really going to change that much from the department I have known for 13 years? I am sure they are, but for the better...I hope. S.O.P changes across the board, restructure of  some duties for the personnel, and finally addressing issues that have been put on the back burner because of lack of time or people to do them are some positives coming from this. With the positives are also going to come the negatives. The hurt feelings by those that don't end up getting a paid position, the egos or power trips between the paid and volunteer members, and the " it's not my job" mentality that some are going to have are just a few negatives. We are going to have to work through them all and change the negatives into positives.
Is the transition going to be all lollipops and rainbows? I don't think so, but it will all work out if we make it work. Some people are going get mad and feeling will be hurt. We all have to remember that we are all in it for the same reason. We are still a family and just like any family we are going to have growing pains. My hope is it will bring us closer together as a department. We will see but we can only get better.

Until next time, be safe