CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office is able to hold its annual Enabling Friends For Our Response Team Program. This event is called EFFORT for short.
During the program, participants will learn how to put out a fire, the proper method to contact 9-1-1 and basic first aid.
One of the most popular activities is the obstacle course, which deputies built a couple of years ago. First responders will help participants navigate through the course, which will end with them climbing over a wall.
The Sheriff’s Office believes this event is important because it helps build personal relationships with different groups in the community.
Sheriff Hank Partin, with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, says, “The gratitude from the families is just amazing. It doesn’t have to be expressed verbally and the sense of accomplishment from the participants, it is very moving. You can’t be there and not be moved.”
EFFORT is put on in conjunction with a number of other first responders in the New River Valley. The fire department will have their trucks on display and participants can try on the firefighter’s gear.
EFFORT is taking place Saturday, June 25 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Motor Mile Complex in Christiansburg.