The Alpha Crew is intended to help new members through the process of completing the new member requirements, registering for MFRI classes, and completing other required training.

Alpha Crew members are asked to attend at least two Alpha Crew meetings per month. They must also meet all other non-staffing requirements for operational members under the Membership Activity Requirements policy, such as attending at least one company meeting per quarter and participating in every mandatory event (like the Carnival).

Prospective members will be invited to attend a New Member Orientation, held the first Tuesday of every month at 7pm. At the meeting, they will be given a membership application to take home, complete, and submit. The OVFC membership application fee is currently $50.

Membership Vote

Prospective members who have submitted an application will be presented to the OVFC membership by the Membership Committee at the next monthly company meeting, held on the second Tuesday of every month at 7pm. The membership will vote to accept or reject each new membership application. Accepted members will be invited to attend the rest of the meeting.

OVFC Email Account

The day after being voted in, each new member will receive an OVFC Google account, including a new email address of the format firstname.lastname@ovfc28.org. New members will receive an email to their personal email account (the one they used to apply for membership) with instructions on how to access their new OVFC account. It is important for new members to sign in to this OVFC email account as soon as possible, to gain access to important information sent by email.

Any questions about OVFC email accounts should be sent to the OVFC IT Committee at it@ovfc28.org.

County Application

The day after being voted in, new members will be sent a County Application to complete online via DocuSign. This must be completed within 7 days. This application will generate a six-digit badge number for the member.

Uniform Pickup

New members are asked to attend a uniform pickup day on the third Tuesday of the month. They will receive an initial uniform issue from the OVFC Quartermaster, as well as the New Member Task Book and their paper for their physical, including instructions for scheduling the physical.

Physical

New operational members are required to complete a physical within 90 days of joining the OVFC. The Anne Arundel County Fire Department currently contracts with Concentra to perform new member physicals. The Membership Committee provides the necessary paperwork to new members at the Uniform Pickup, including instructions for calling Concentra to schedule the physical.

An appointment must be made for a physical (even if the Concentra representative on the phone indicates that walk-ins are allowed). The physical may require multiple hours, and members may be required to return for follow-up tests.

Fingerprinting

All new members are required to complete fingerprinting for a background check within 90 days of joining the OVFC. Fingerprinting is performed by appointment only at the County’s Volunteer Coordinator’s office down in Annapolis. The Membership Committee will email instructions to new members for how to schedule a fingerprinting appointment soon after they are voted in.

Alpha Crew

When they are voted in, new members are automatically added to their first duty crew, the Alpha Crew. Members remain on the Alpha Crew until they complete their training and are added to the riding database, at which point they select another duty crew. New members are asked to attend at least two Alpha Crew meetings per month.