Illinois Corps Of Fire Chaplains, Inc (ICFC)

Welcome to the ICFC

We are a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) volunteer organization established in 2008.

The purpose of the Illinois Corps of Fire Chaplains, Inc is

- to serve Fire Service Chaplains, 
- to support the ministry of fire and emergency response Chaplains,
- to assist fire service agencies in developing Chaplaincy programs in their agencies,
- to develop standards of practice in cooperation with emergency agencies,
- to develop a network designed to assist victims of fires, disasters and terrorism.

            Membership: Download ICFC Member Application

            Handbook: Download New Member Handbook 2012

ICFC Board Of Directors                                            
                  
> Dave Van Laar - President   dvl@oakstate.com
> Ray Gurunian - Vice President   rgurunian@carolstreamfire.org
> Secretary - Carol Van Laar   cvl0408@hotmail.com
> Treasurer -

In partnership with MABAS we are reaching across the state of Illinois to provide an effective network of mutual aid, training and a standard of care in our departments and communities.  www.mabas.org . Sign up for updates by email to be automatically notified when new trainings and announcements are available. Simply enter your email to the left of this post. 
          

Administrative Headquarters  1081 County Rd 2500 E Magnolia, IL  61336

 

 

New Officers

Fellow Chaplains,

Our sincere thank you to those who have brought the Illinois Corps of Fire Chaplains from a dream to a functional organization. This is not an easy task. Jennie worked so hard to see this through and we owe her our gratitude. Darrell, Sean and Juan have also served well as our most recent officers and we thank them. 

At our annual meeting on June 20, the following Chaplains were elected your new officers:

President - Dave Van Laar - Wenona Fire Protection District pastorchappy88@hotmail.com

Vice President - Ray Gurunian - Carol Stream Fire Protection District rgurunian@carolstreamfire.org

Treasurer - 

Secretary - Carol Van Laar - Magnolia Fire Protection District     cvl0408@hotmail.com

We will be active officers and solicit your help. We have already met and are working on our 120 day plan. We plan to meet again on July 10 to formalize our next steps. We need your help. This is YOUR organization and we recognize the importance of your feedback. Please send your suggestions and observations before our next meeting.

We are growing and with that comes growing pains - we feel some already! To better serve our members we will be establishing committees. If you have any expertise or desires in these areas - please volunteer.  

1. TECHNICAL - Keep us electronically current & Manage the website functionally  

2. TRAINING - Develop programs and standards & a delivery tool via the internet  

3. MEMBERSHIP - Streamline the application and credentialing process                

4. REGIONS - Refine Regions and Districts & Establish Directors

Our thanks to all who participated in the Chaplain's Conference at the IAFPD in Springfield.  

A quick story I pray does not happen again:

      On my trip back to the conference I came across a major fire scene.  I checked with I.C. and they directed me to a pastor in the crowd of spectators.  He wanted to help but was not certain what to do.  You see, he felt the call and had been looking for Fire Chaplain training.  But, he could find none close enough to attend.  In the meantime we were holding our meetings just 50 miles away.  How convenient it would have been for him.  How sad he missed us.  Let's not let any more potential Chaplains miss the call because they do not know where to train. 

God Bless you as you serve.

Dave Van Laar - 815-252-4314

pastorchappy88@hotmail.com

Elections for ICFC and Thanks From Me

Hi all.
It has been several years now that the ICFC has led the way in Illinois for fire service chaplains to be trained, involved and prepared.  During that time I have served as President. It has a blast and I am SO proud of what we have accomplished together and hopeful for what is to come. God has blessed us richly.  It began with a group of 10 chaplains in 2007 at a Federation of Fire Chaplains conference in Oklahoma City. It has grown into the important and fruitful Fire Service organization that it is today.
 
My life and ministry has moved to Wisconsin - literally.  And as much as I thought I could 'do both' my old stuff and the new stuff, God is urging me to let go and move forward.  Now seems the right time to do that. Looking back is not how I lead, and I cannot spend my time looking back now and disappointing people who count on me to be there.  Our chaplains need someone who can be present and active today and tomorrow.
 
I know that we have great leadership in the ICFC. 
It is time for a new face, a new vision and a new leader.
 
I am no longer able to serve as President, and need you all to consider how to elect a new person when you next gather, perhaps at the IAFPD conference that is being held in June.  Dave and Carol Van Laar are hosting that one for the chaplains. It looks to be a great event and a valuable use of your time.
 
You have my full support and I will be glad to help in whatever ways I can to ensure a smooth transition.  There is a lot of information and history to be passed on, as well as functional things like the website. Please discuss it among you, the leaders in this organization, how you think you will need to proceed. 
Thank you for your understanding and your continued support.

My cell number will remain the same for now, but my email has changed to skypilot1970@gmail.com.
God bless you guys and keep up the good work.
 
Jennie

Division 54 2013 Chaplain Training Schedule

The following is the currently updated training schedule for Division 54.  For more information or to register contact Chaplain Paul Bauer prbauer@frontiernet.net

May 9-10, 2013  
CISM - Group Crisis Intervention
Chaplain Darrell Coons Instructor
Download MABAS Flyer 02

Designed to present the core elements of a comprehensive, systematic and multi-component crisis intervention curriculum, the Group Crisis Intervention course will prepare participants to understand a wide range of crisis intervention services. Fundamentals of Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) will be outlined and participants will leave with the knowledge and tools to provide several group crisis interventions, specifically demobilizations, defusings and the Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD). The need for appropriate follow-up services and referrals when necessary will also be discussed.

Two-Day Course: 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., 14 Contact Hours
Effingham Fire Dept, Effingham IL

 

September 12-13 2013
Post Traumatic Stress (PTS) Initiative

 Purpose:

To develop and implement an ongoing comprehensive program/model/process, providing support, education, and intervention for Responders – fire, police, EMS, dispatch, support staffs, etc --  to reduce Post Traumatic Stress.

Training Event Details:

            September 12-13, 2013,    2 Days – 9 hours
            Location: Knights of Columbus Hall – Effingham, Illinois

             3 modules [3 hours each]:
                        1. PTS Basics
                        2. PTS and Responders – Visioning Possibilities
                        3. Creating an Ongoing Plan with Chaplain Committee, etc.

Division 12 2013 Chaplain Training Calendar

Here is the download link for the 2013

Division 12 Chaplain training Schedule.

It is PDF form so you will need to go to the ICFC website

via the link below to retrieve the document. 

Hope to see you there!

Download 2013Div12ChaplainTraining

Taking orders for ICFC Apparrel and Merchandise

US Safety Products is very proud to be the official apparel vendor for Illinois Corps of Fire Chaplains.  Please peruse the items that are available with the official Illinois Corps of Fire Chaplains logo on it.  If you don't see what you are looking for please let us know.  We can then evaluate the product/item to see where it would fit in with the program.

Whether you want to customize apparel for your specific organization, or you have a cool idea, we are always looking for new ideas to enhance this program.  All you have to do is to tell us your needs.  

**We are asking you, our customer, to take the next 2 weeks (Please order by December 2) as a pre-order period.  So please place your order and your items will ship around December 22^st  **

Thanks again for the opportunity to earn your business.
Ryan Crabtree, US Safety Products

http://www.ussafetyproducts.com/products.php?cat=105

 

ICFC OFFICIAL STORE NOW OPEN

The ICFC is working with US SAFETY PRODUCTS to provide a storefront selling shirts, jackets, stickers and several other items for the Illinois Corps of Fire Chaplains.  The store will be listing NEW ITEMS this week.  Check out  US SAFETY PRODUCTS and save the site to your bookmarks.

 

New ICFC Publication: Fire Chief's Guide

The ICFC proudly releases the first printed publication from the ICFC, authored by Fire Chief Curt Kramer (Hampshire, IL) entitled The Fire Chief's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Chaplains.

This publication was first distributed at the 2010 Fire Rescue International Conference here in Chicago during our presentation An All-Hazards Plan for Utilizing Chaplains in Emergency Response, taught by Chaplain Jennie Swanson and Fire Chief Craig Haigh of Hanover Park, IL as well as Fire Chief Curt Kramer.

This brief and humorous guide gives you what you need to know about the new standard for fire chaplain program establishment, training and implementation.  These are the standards that we follow here in Illinois through the Illinois Corps of Fire Chaplains and the MABAS Chaplain Program. 

Printed copies are available at no cost.  Please make your request to jennieswanson@sbcglobal.net and we will get them out to you in booklet form as soon as possible.

Enjoy and distribute as needed! (Intended to be printed double sided in booklet form)

 Download Thefirechiefsguide

 

Policies

ICFC MABAS Program Policy Manual

The following document is the approved ICFC Policy Manual containing Chaplain Committee structure and recommendations for fire departments to consider when initiating a MABAS Chaplain Program.  It is our hope that these recommendations are of help to you. 

Download Icfc_mabas_program_policy_manual