Improve communication between Monongalia County and VFDs

At a time when communities throughout the state are struggling to staff volunteer fire departments, the last thing Monongalia County residents need is for county commissioners to stop communicating with the Monongalia County Volunteer Fire Association
Yet it appears that has happened.
Association President Mickey Rhinehart is questioning why the commission asked his group to come up with a plan to distribute about $500,000 in county fire protection funds — the plan was presented last month — but then went ahead with its own plan. “It made the committee we had set up and the association feel like including us had been an empty gesture,” Rhinehart told The Dominion Post. “If this is what you wanted to do, why not just do it instead of wasting our time and effort.”
That’s a valid point — one for which Rhinehart said he has yet to receive an answer.
The Monongalia County Commission needs to do a better job of supporting those volunteers who answer the call and put their lives on the line for us. Asking for input from the association and then ignoring it only leads to distrust.