TOWN OF KENT—David Jacobsen, Erin Scott and Cris Dellaripa are bound by a common bond.

The three residents of Lake Carmel who serve Putnam’s emergency services community with pride and distinction, all began their careers with the Explorer Scout movement.

Last weekend, the trio joined other volunteers who supervised Putnam’s 7th annual Explorer weekend at the Putnam County Fire Training Center in Kent that brought more than 100 future firefighters and EMT’s together for two days of rigorous training, competition, camaraderie and socialization.

Young people from Putnam were joined by their counterparts residing in Dutchess, Rockland, Orange and Westchester counties along with junior members of the FDNY.

Scott, a special education teacher, who volunteers her time with the Lake Carmel Fire Department and helps to organize the program each summer, called the experience “awesome. These are our future emergency providers. We must get these youngsters involved at an early age and train them properly. The skills learned each August during the Explorer’s weekend will last them a lifetime.”

Fourteen to 18 year olds participated by donning turnout gear, using hoses, studying with veteran emergency responders and even checking blood pressures, pulses and other vital functions of teens and adults alike.

Jacobsen, 36, captain of the Carmel Volunteer Ambulance Corps, credited the Explorer Scout movement with “planting the seed that allowed me to learn what I know today about the medical field.”

Dellaripa, a deputy emergency services coordinator in Putnam, also praised the program. “I went through the course not too many years ago as did my daughter, Alyssa. We both are giving back to our community and in Alyssa’s case—our nation since she recently enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Many of our firefighting force and EMS providers have gone through this great program with tremendous success,” he said.

Putnam Deputy Commissioner of Emergency Services Adam Stiebeling is another believer in the program: “It affords young people an opportunity to learn about teamwork while exploring an incredibly rewarding career and opportunity to assist those in need.”