About Faist VAC
The William P. Faist Volunteer Ambulance Corps is a team of your neighbors providing free emergency medical care and transport to Chestnut Ridge and the surrounding communities — day and night, every day of the year.
The Faist Volunteer Ambulance Corps plays a vital role in Rockland County's multi-tiered emergency medical system. When a 911 call comes in for a medical emergency, motor vehicle accident, or other emergency, dispatchers send the appropriate response — including our members, who provide 24-hour emergency medical care and transport, responding to over 3,000 calls a year alongside Rockland Paramedic Services for advanced life support when it's needed.
Named in Memory, Built by Hand
In 1975, Bill and Erna Faist named the Corps in memory of their son, lost in an automobile accident, and set out to bring a dedicated ambulance service to their part of town. What follows is the story of how a group of six neighbors became the Corps that serves Chestnut Ridge today.
- 1975
Bill and Erna Faist, feeling the growing area then known as South Spring Valley needed its own ambulance service, form a group of six community-minded residents to pursue New York State certification, set boundaries, and recruit members.
- 1976–77
With no home of their own, the group meets in local homes, schools, the power company's building, and the Hugh Gassner Firehouse while recruiting and training. Their first ambulance, bought used from Nanuet Volunteer Ambulance Corps, is kept in the Faists' driveway.
- July 1, 1977
After nearly three years of work, the William P. Faist Volunteer Ambulance Corps goes into service for the first time.
- 1977–1979
The Town of Ramapo donates land for a headquarters. Members become carpenters, masons, and electricians alongside their EMT training to build it themselves, moving into the still-unfinished building by the winter of 1979.
- February 2018
After nearly 40 years in that first building, the Corps moves into a newly built headquarters on the adjoining property.
Over the years, the William P. Faist Ambulance Corps has continued to grow alongside the community it serves — and we continue to need more volunteers to keep serving our neighbors. See how you can help →