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Anthony and Diane Napoli first crossed paths in 1975 as volunteers with South Brooklyn volunteer ambulance service BRAVO. Today, the couple — married for 41 years — are at the heart of BRAVO’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

Diane joined BRAVO’s youth squad at 15, driven by an accident her father had when she was a child. This early experience ignited her passion for emergency care and inspired her to become an EMT and CPR instructor, and eventually a retired public school science teacher.

“He had fallen, and it scared me so much that I was like, ‘Oh, I need to be able to take care of this.’ I didn’t like the feeling of not being in control,” she said. “It was a great inspiration for me to teach because I taught science, biology [and] health, so it was a very excellent career path for me.”

Anthony, too, was shaped by his past. Witnessing his uncle’s passing left him with a sense of helplessness that propelled him into a career in emergency medicine. His 30-year tenure with FDNY EMS solidified his dedication, and he credits BRAVO with launching his path in the field.

“The family felt helpless. I felt helpless,” he said. “There is no doubt in my mind and in anybody else’s mind that BRAVO launched my career to go into emergency medicine and projected me in, obviously.”

Today, Anthony serves as BRAVO’s president, and Diane sits on the organization’s board of directors. Brooklyn Paper sat down with the couple to learn more about the organization as it marks a milestone anniversary.

A vital lifeline

Volunteer ambulance services were founded out of necessity in the early 1970s because the New York City Health and Hospitals corporation, which operated NYC EMS until it merged with the FDNY in 1996, did not have enough ambulances to handle the volume of emergency calls due to underfunding. This led to wait times of 40 minutes to an hour or more.

Volunteer ambulances are not part of the 911 system and have their own phone numbers (BRAVO’s is 718-680-1111). However, New York State regulates the boundaries within which a volunteer ambulance can operate. In BRAVO’s case, it can only operate its three ambulances in Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Fort Hamilton, where they provide pre-hospital care, transportation and promote health and wellness in the community.

Everyone at BRAVO — from the EMTs, dispatchers, and administrators to the cleaning and maintenance crew, youth squad advisors  and comptroller — is a volunteer.

When BRAVO was formed 50 years ago, it had over 250 volunteers, but that number has dwindled to around 80 active volunteers today.

“Over the past years, I would say 25 years, volunteerism declined, so we do not have as many crews as we normally would,” Diane said.

Volunteers sign up for four-hour shifts on a scheduling platform and work about 10 tours a week, she said.

All volunteer EMTs are trained and certified through the New York State Department of Health. The training takes six months — usually two nights a week — and costs about $1,400. However, New York State reimburses students who are part of volunteer ambulance services.

“The state reimburses BRAVO, and then BRAVO reimburses [the students], so they get about $900 back from a $1,400 cost,” Diane explained. “In the end, it only costs about $500. It really gets people interested in taking [the class], knowing that they’re going to get some of that money back.”

“We are re-certified every three years by New York State,” Anthony added. “The second group we have are our dispatchers. The emergency medical dispatch training is done by us here.”

Shaping the future

Rahma Hassan, 18, joined BRAVO’s youth squad in eighth grade and became an EMT after New York State lowered the age requirement for training to 17. She has already logged 500 hours of volunteer work in addition to her regular job and college studies in pre-med.

“The youth squad is great for anyone interested in EMS,” Hassan said. “I did learn a lot from [Diane and Anthony Napoli]. They prepared me more than I could have ever imagined for EMT school. It’s a lot of information thrown at you at once. So it really was beneficial.”

Diane said that volunteering at BRAVO looks good on a college application, especially for those pursuing medical careers.

“It’s a very big deal, especially for people going to medical programs; having this experience on your resume is an excellent path,” she said. “Two of our female youth squad members are in medical school right now.”

BRAVO’s services are free for all patients. If a patient has health insurance, volunteer ambulance services can bill the insurance company. Even if the insurance company refuses to pay, Diane stressed that they will not go “after the patient for the money.”

Despite the option for third-party billing, BRAVO relies on Federal Emergency Management Agency grants, donations and fundraisers to maintain operations, pay for insurance, and purchase new equipment and ambulances, which cost $250,000 each.

But BRAVO’s upcoming 50th anniversary celebration is more than just a fundraiser, Anthony said – it’s a way to say “we made it.”

“It was hard for quite a number of years,” Diane. “With lack of volunteerism, we went through a very tough time, plus COVID. COVID was such a big strain on everyone.”

Despite dwindling personal protective equipment (PPE) supply, BRAVO tackled the pandemic head-on, even as the group’s volunteer base began to shrink.

Today, the local ambulance corp is still going strong.

“The bigger part of this is, this is a celebration of 50 years, a celebration of the members, a celebration of what you can do with volunteerism in your community,” Anthony said.

BRAVO will mark 50 years of service with a gala dinner at the U.S. Army Fort Hamilton Community Center on Thursday, Sept. 12. Anyone interested in joining or donating can visit bravoambulance.org.