THROOP, Pa. — Eric Hartshorn has spent the last 33 years as a volunteer firefighter for Throop Hose Company #2.
Now, he has to say goodbye.
"My whole family was involved in this, my two sisters, my brother, my father, myself. It's been a long journey," said Hartshorn.
The 118-year-old fire company officially dissolved Wednesday night. It hasn't been fully operational in years because of dwindling membership, so this was more of a formality, but still, an emotional one.
"It was a tough decision. We only had five members that would regularly come around, and we didn't think it was fair to the community to send out envelopes and ask for money when we couldn't even hold a function or get people out to respond to calls. So this is what it came to," said Hartshorn.
"This is the part that makes it most difficult because you have to grasp the reality of it. When they sign the papers, it puts an end to 118 years of heroic volunteerism and community support, and it's an emotional day," said Andy Hegedus, fire chief for the borough.
Hegedus says the lack of volunteers is not a problem unique to Lackawanna County.
"It is prevalent across the United States and particularly in the state of Pennsylvania as membership rolls and rosters decrease. It's a sign of the times. There are too many things going on, just outside the fire service alone, that people don't have the time or the hours to commit to volunteering."
There are still two fire companies in the borough. Fire service will not change.
Both the Hose Company #2 building and the truck from are up for sale. Once they're sold, the money will be returned to the borough of Throop.