VIENNA — The township’s volunteer fire department is looking to give back to one of its members who has given plenty of time to the township over the years.

According to a GiveSendGo campaign posted to the department’s Facebook page, fire Captain Gene McCarthy, a 30-year veteran of the department, recently suffered a life-threatening off-duty medical event. It resulted in him being taken by helicopter to Cleveland for emergency surgery.

Lt. Mark Haddle, who is spearheading the effort, explained that McCarthy is expected to be off for nearly six months.

“He’s extremely dedicated; he’s very selfless, he’ll do anything for anybody,” Haddle said. “He’s looking to be off work for probably the next four to six months, as well as his family having to travel back and forth to Cleveland every day to be by his side.”

“We’re looking to do this fundraiser to kind of offset that hardship,” he added.

Haddle, who has been with the fire department for 12 years, said McCarthy is a close friend.

“He’s just a darn good guy,” Haddle said.

Haddle noted that McCarthy doesn’t just dedicate his time to Vienna. He also volunteers at the Brookfield Fire Department.

Nick Cresanto, a shift captain with Brookfield Fire Department, estimated McCarthy joined them several years ago, adding that he’s run many calls with him.

“Gene came to us with many years from Vienna; he was a welcome asset here, he’s always wanted to lend a helping hand — just help out wherever it was necessary,” Cresanto said. “He shows up on calls and like I said, there’s always things to do on calls and he shows up and he’s always lending a helping hand and always there to help.”

The GiveSendGo campaign has raised $2,730 for McCarthy in the four days since it began.

Anyone interested in donating will not be limited to that however, as donations can also be dropped off at the fire department between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Checks can be made out to the Vienna Volunteer Fire Department, as long as Capt. McCarthy is written in the memo line.