The Silver Creek Emergency Squad recently received its new ambulance after two years of waiting. The vehicle was purchased entirely through insurance billing revenue at no cost to taxpayers.

“This achievement reflects the dedication, service, and financial responsibility of our volunteer members, who continue to put our community first. We extend our deepest gratitude to every member who made this possible through their time, commitment, and unwavering support,” the Emergency Squad stated in a social media post.

The new ambulance is especially necessary after a brutal month of December in which the Silver Creek Fire Department and Emergency Squad received 69 calls, including 49 Emergency Medical Services (EMS) calls. Both figures were a high mark for the entire year.

In total, the Silver Creek Fire Department and Emergency Squad received 538 calls in 2025. Of those calls, 352 were EMS calls. There were also 52 motor vehicle accidents and 11 structure fires. Every month of 2025 had more than 30 total calls and more than 20 EMS calls.

Submitted Photo Pictured are Silver Creek Emergency Squad members Eva Tytka, Jim Tytka, Pat Grzasko, Dave Sikorski, Randy Beutel, Katie Krisch, Jeff Griewisch, Colleen Griewisch, and Brandyn Griewisch.

Now that the new ambulance has been delivered, the Village declared its 2009 Ford E450 ambulance as surplus equipment.

The Silver Creek Village Board approved a sale of the ambulance to a neighboring municipality for $28,000, with $3,000 due upon delivery in the near future, along with subsequent payments of $1,000 each month. The remaining balance will be due by December of 2027. The agreement is pending approval of Village Attorney Peter Clark.

The Village Board also recently approved a transfer of $10,000 from its third party billing account to the Emergency Squad Staffing account for the purpose of staffing ambulance drivers and Emergency Medical Technicians for EMS calls. Like the ambulance purchase, the funds allocated to EMS staffing came from billing revenue, rather than general taxpayer dollars.

The Village Board approved an agreement to compensate its ambulance drivers and EMTs this past year. As part of the agreement, the Village agreed to continue to fund the account to leave cash on hand to allocate for staffing needs. The Village received a monthly EMS staffing report that detailed the billing in December, as well as a request from the Emergency Squad to increase the funding in its billing account, but the Village agreed to allocate $10,000, rather than up to $50,000 as requested. Village Trustee Jeff Hornburg, Mayor at the time the agreement was made, requested that reports be provided to the Board moving forward that detail the spending of the allocated funds.

The next meeting of the Silver Creek Village Board is scheduled for Monday, March 2 at 7 p.m. at the Village Hall.