President's Message

Founded in 1944 as World War II was coming to an end, the West Friendship Volunteer Fire Department has proudly served the community for over 80 years. I encourage you to review our history to learn more.

We remain committed to providing Fire, Rescue and EMS services as well as Public Safety and Fire Education to the residents of West Friendship, MD and surrounding communities.  If you have driven by our station at the corner of Route 32 and Old Frederick Road (Route 99), you will notice it is the largest station in Howard County. We currently operate two Advanced Life Support units, two Fire Engines, one Tower, two Tankers, a Water Supply, two ATVs, and two Brush units.

We are a combination department with six Howard County Department of Fire Rescue Services career staffing 24/7. We have ample individual bunkrooms for volunteers to stay in overnight and adequate study, lounge and eating areas at the station to interact as a team or quiet areas to study. Additionally, we have members who still respond from home as needed to get additional apparatus on the street.

In addition to our emergency response members, we also have many Administrative members who help with a range of activities such as fiscal management, fundraising, human resources, building maintenance, etc.

We are currently working on a Cadet program for members between the ages of 12-16. We look forward to starting this program up in 2027 once the appropriate polices/procedures have been developed and approved.

We are actively seeking members of the community who would like to be part of our Team, whether in an Operational (Fire, Rescue, EMS) or Administrative capacity.  If you are interested in becoming part of the West Friendship VFD team, please stop by and/or visit our Recruitment page to start the process!

President John McDowell