RHFARS
CONTACT INFORMATION

If you are experiencing a
​medical emergency
dial 911.


Rocky Hill First Aid &
Rescue Squad


P.O. Box 175
1 Skillman Ave.
Rocky Hill, NJ 08553

www.53Rescue.org

Email:
Info@53Rescue.org

Phone and Fax: 609 921-8673

Quick Notes for Squad Members

Online LOSAP submissions

Members are now able to submit event reports for service credit, some applicable for LOSAP. See directions in the member section.

I Am Responding

Help with resetting your I Am Responding log-on information along with a refresher on usage is now available in the Member's Area.

53Rescue
2020-2021 Fundraising Drive

The 2020-2021 fund raising drive is in full swing.  As in prior years, everyone in our coverage area will receive our annual mailing expressing  the squads  request for your continued financial support, and more importantly, the need to expand our roster of dedicated community volunteers. Regardless of your level of experience or available time, there is a place for you on your squad where you can experience the satisfaction that comes with serving your community in this very important way. 

For those who have asked to make a donation by credit card, click on the Donation button below and you will be on your way with a secure link to do so. 


RHFARS 2021 Elections

At the December 13, 2020 General Membership meeting, RHFARS held their annual election of Executive Officers, Trustee and the Operations Position of Chief.

Tom Bremner will be continuing in his role as President for 2021. Jason Engleka will continue as Vice President as will Marj Yuschack as Treasurer. Secretary Bill Hallman will continue in that post. 

Chief James Banks will  continue to his sixth term with Matthew Mroz, III again returning as Deputy Chief.

Bev Poelstra has been elected to a second term as Trustee.
Your volunteers at the
Rocky Hill First Aid and Rescue Squad
wish all our Rocky Hill and Franklin
friends and families 
a very peaceful, safe and healthy
holiday season. 
Picture
​Bravo, and Thank You to our friends at Montgomery Middle School,
​PAWS for a Cause
​for their heartwarming tribute to our local first responders!
Each month, the staff and students at Montgomery Upper Middle School engage in a character building program titled PAWS for a Cause. Here, we take time to pause typical instruction to learn about and practice the core values of UMS - Respect, Empathy, and Resiliency. As our world at UMS has been disrupted by CoVid-19, the students and staff could not help but be grateful for our fellow community members who are working hard and risking their health to help fight this pandemic so that we can re-enter the doors of UMS as soon as possible. Our April PAWS for a Cause was dedicated to you - the essential workers fighting so diligently for our health and safety. Please enjoy this video as the students at UMS “paws” to thank you for your efforts and sacrifice during this time, and please know that even though distance now pulls us apart, now more than ever we are united as we support you.   

Mr. Cory Delgado
Principal, Montgomery Upper Middle School

Corona Virus 
Links to information and
contacts you need to know.

First please review the most important things that you can do NOW to help prevent the spread of the Corona virus to you, your family, friends, and others in your community. The link to CDC, Center for Disease Control, will take you to their webpage where thorough and straight-forward instructions will be given on how to prepare for the COVID-19 virus.  Information of many other aspects of preparation and protection are offered at this very informative site and all should be reviewed.
To stay up to date on local information that is current and most accurate for our immediate area, please use the Montgomery Board of Health link below.
The following link is to the CDC site which offers a Frequently Asked Questions page that many find helpful.

A heartfelt thanks to
Deborah Westbrook and
​Robert Ashbaugh,
one of our own devoted families.

​On December 31, our RHFARS family said goodbye to two members who represent one of the many families that volunteer for the squad and serve as the very definition of devotion and service to the community.  Deborah Westbrook and Robert Ashbaugh retired from active duty.

Deborah has been a member of the squad for almost a decade. She has served as Driver, EMT, and Chief during her tenure.  On Dec. 31, she ended her current volunteer service as a Trustee for RHFARS. Deborah’s husband, Robert Ashbaugh who joined with Deborah, will be leaving his position as Driver, Certified Driver Instructor, and Secretary of the Executive Board.

Both Robert and Deborah have selflessly volunteered many hundreds of hours to the operation, administrative health and growth of our squad, bringing with them their experience not only in EMS but also drawing from their former legal careers.  They were key contributors in bringing a squad in danger of closing, back to the active and flourishing status we enjoy today. 

Deborah and Robert, our squad cannot thank you enough for your years of service other than to credit you for the many lives you have touched; both your fellow squad members you have mentored, and the hundreds of residents of Rocky Hill, Franklin and surrounding communities you have responded to in their time of greatest need.

Sincerely,
​Your Rocky Hill First Aid and Rescue Squad

RHFARS appoints new medical director.

​Dr. Joseph Portale

​Joseph Portale MD, MSPH, FACEP, FAAEM and Rocky Hill resident, has been appointed Medical Director for the Rocky Hill First Aid and Rescue Squad. Joe replaces another Rocky Hill resident, Dr. Beverly Poelstra, who has retired from the position after many years of dedicated service to the squad.
 
Dr Portale is a board certified practicing Emergency Medicine Physician.  He graduated from Villanova University in 2000 and continued on to receive a Masters of Science in Public Health from Jefferson College of Graduate Studies in Philadelphia PA.  He obtained his MD degree from Jefferson Medical College in 2008.  He continued residency training in Emergency Medicine at Jefferson University Hospital, and was named Chief Resident from 2010-2011.  He is a lifetime member of Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society, and has won multiple teaching and honorary awards.  He is a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians as well as a Fellow of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine.  Dr. Portale is currently practicing full time at the University Medical Center of Princeton NJ, as well as Capital Health Hospital System, both Regional Medical Center and Hopewell campus.
 
We are very fortunate to have Dr. Portale in the RHFARS family and look forward to working with him as he helps our squad maintain excellence in emergency patient care.