Search and Rescue - Recruitment Challenge

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Aug 12, 2024, 10:00 ET

Why are so few willing to join a team?

DALLAS, Aug. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- For several years law enforcement agencies around the US have had a significant struggle hiring and keeping recruits to fill need positions within their department. There are a number of reasons for this and almost all of them translate into the same effect for those of us recruiting for Search and Rescue (SAR) teams. However, we have an even steeper hill to climb in that our positions are non-paid volunteers. Combine that with a similarly high standard for screening and training, plus the cost associated with uniforms and equipment (including dog expenses for K9 handlers), and the unpredictable schedule and often adverse conditions makes our recruitment poster sound more like a warning than an invitation.

It has always required a certain type of person to deal with the rigors of our mission. That alone dwindles our available recruitment pool considerably from the general population. Add to that the need to go through a thorough background and reference check, provide a doctor's release, complete a 5-mile cross country physical fitness test, and pass a board review process further depletes the recruit pool. And by the time we finish painting the picture that there will be at minimum of six months of basic training plus the need to train regularly (for our team its 4 hours every weekend, year-round) we have reduced the available pool to only a handful of men and women who are drawn to that type of challenge.

Then comes our task of trying to find and recruit those few… understanding that even amongst that higher potential group about 50% of them will either not pass screening or drop out before finishing basic training.

The rewards for those that make the cut are significant…

Communication, navigation, and survival skills
Self-confidence and the ability to stay levelheaded under stress
Comradery within a field-tested group of dedicated professionals
A sense of accomplishment and making a difference in a culture where that is not easily done.

All the hurdles described in the paragraphs above pale in comparison to a single life saved or a family who finds closure in the return of a deceased loved one.

Do you have what it takes? If you do, find a local team and go visit their training sessions. Check out their reputation with local law enforcement and do your due diligence. Not by just browsing their website, but by watching how they operate and doing real research. If you are comfortable with what you find talk to them about plugging in at some level. You may want to go all in and apply for membership with the team, or you may want to just volunteer to help with their training by being a victim for a while. Or, if none of those options are available you may want to help support the team in some other tangible way… financially, administratively, or just helping them get some of the recognition they deserve by spreading the word about what they do. Take the time to make a difference… it's a decision you will not regret.

About Search One Rescue Team:
As a 501 (c)3 organization the team is based in North Central Texas serving all of Texas and Southern Oklahoma. The organization's mission statement is "to assist governmental agencies locate lost and missing persons". That mission is accomplished with specially trained Search and Rescue dogs and search personnel using the latest in ground search technology. There is never a charge to the end user and the team is fully self-contained placing no burden on the requesting agency. The organization is funded only through grants and donations from the communities they serve.