During the First few months of 1955, five people met at various times to discuss the possibility of organizing a rescue squad to serve the growing communities of Levittown and Fairless Hills. These people sold subscriptions to the Evening Times to raise funds for a down payment on a used 1948 Buick ambulance.
The first recorded membership meeting of the "Levittown Emergency Squad" was held at the John Billington Post of the V.F.W. Attending the meeting were only eight people; they were: Fred Smith, Olga Buck, James McGonigle, Robert Goldsmith, Bernard Korson, Mrs. Lee Garb, Michael Garmella, and Betty Croingshield. Plans were discussed to hold a first-aid class to train new members. The ambulance was to be housed in the rear garage of Beck Mortuary. These were the first members of the squad, and this was their first headquarters.
By August 7, 1955, the general membership voted to purchase a second ambulance to facilitate transporting patients outside of the immediate area. On November 1, 1955 at a special meeting, a revised constitution and bylaws governing the Levittown Emergency Squad was adopted. At that same meeting, the name of the organization was changed. From then on it was to be known as the Levittown-Fairless Hills Rescue Squad.
Within one year, the squad had outgrown its first headquarters, and in the Fall of 1956 moved to the old Bolton Mansion in Holly Hill. The building was rented to the squad for $1/year by Levitt and Sons. The rapidly growing organization responded to approximately 500 calls during its first year.
In January of 1962 the rescue squad had grown from its original eight members to over one hundred, and had responded to nearly 2,000 calls per year. Squad headquarters was once again moved to a new, larger location at 7405 Newportville Road. Less than four years later, a garage was built to house the five ambulances the squad now operated.
As the Levittown-Fairless Hills community increased, so did the demand for ambulance services. In March of 1971, a group of squad members began construction on a larger and more functional headquarters. The new headquarters was built on the existing garage. As operating expenses and the demand for services increased, funds obtained through donations and block collections became insufficient. Progress on the new headquarters came to a standstill. In January of 1973, the squad appealed to the public for donations, through its first subscription drive. The response was overwhelming. Local businessmen offered financial aid, and through the generosity of the public, progress on the building resumed in 1974.
In the early 1980's the County of Bucks initiated a new form of care to the community, Mobile Intensive Care Units, staffed by Paramedics, and the squad was there with the most students in the first paramedic class. The first MICU was in service to the Levittown-Fairless Hills community in approximately one year, staffed with volunteers from the squad.
By the end of 1983, it was apparent that the squad should once more expand it's service to the community. More calls were coming in for the service of the squad, and so in January of 1984 work began on the creation of a sub station, to be located in Falls Township. A location was found on Makefield Road, and the squad acquired the old Falls Township Fire Company substation.
Today, many years later, the Levittown-Fairless Hills Rescue Squad has grown from eight members, who would volunteer their time to the community, by riding in a used 1948 ambulance when possible, to a full compliment of ALS and BLS units, manned 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from two locations.
From the rear of a mortuary to our current locations, our goal has always been to provide the best possible care to the community, and its so eloquently states in the official squad prayer:
Intensify our compassion for our fellow man. Grant that we may place above all else the services we are duty bound to render our fellow man. Give us the strength and serenity to carry out our duties in the face of grace and sometimes hopeless situations. Let us give more of ourselves in every situation we encounter, for we pass this way but once...
