HERO PROFILES: AVFD Fire Fighter Blaine Slacum

“Take me out to the ball game, Take me out with the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack I don't care if I never get back,” Fire Fighter Blaine Slacum hums this classic song as he prepares to volunteer with the Arundel Volunteer Fire Department. At the moment he is not picturing a day of house fires or car accidents. Instead he is thinking about rooting for the Bowie Baysox and hoping not to use medical gear.

“The Bowie Baysox approached the AVFD with the chance to staff the first aide room for all home games with staff from our volunteer members,” said Slacum a Crofton resident. He went on to explain “I was asked to take on the project of scheduling and coordinating getting people to staff the event.”

Slacum said this is a large undertaking due to the large number of home games. The stadium located near the intersection of U.S. Route 301 and U.S. Route 50 is the home of the Baltimore Orioles' Double-A affiliate in the Eastern League, the Bowie Baysox.

Slacum went on to say, working with the Baysox has been a lot of fun. “It is a win-win situation. The Baysox needs a service and it allows us to interact with the public also,” says Slacum. He goes on to add that the volunteer EMT's put in close to 900 hours of their time. “This was an excellent opportunity for our members to support the community and enjoy doing what they're trained to do.”

“We manage calls from a simple scraped knee to someone getting hit by baseballs or even some of the more serious as in chest pains,” said the father of two.

“The best part about being a fire fighter and EMT is just helping people, knowing that the training I have received allows me to help others in a time of need,” said Slacum.

“The worst element is not being able to help everyone,” Slacum said. He works in the Anne Arundel Medical Center’s ER. He is enrolled in the paramedic program at Prince Georges Community College and also plans to obtain a degree in Fire Science.

“When my daughters  were born I knew I wanted to do something that they would be proud of and something that I would be proud to do,” said the father of twin girls. Over the past 5-years he has become trained as a firefighter/EMT and is qualified to drive the ambulance.

When asked about his most interesting day of volunteering he said “I’m not sure that you can single one day out since every day and every call is different.”

Members of the AVFD can be found at all Bowie Baysox home games including Saturday, August 13th, when the Rocknoceros will return.

Rocknoceros is a three-man children's show featuring original children's songs as well as popular sing-alongs. The show caters to children and is designed to entertain the parents in attendance too. The concert begins at 4:15 pm and the game begins at 6:35 pm.