There have been several good ideas.  We've talked about a house burn, but In Illinois it takes around $1000 if there is no asbestos (there's all kind of paperwork and inspections involved).  So far I haven't had any approved that have been offered to us.

We put a lot of emphasis on learning the 911 address system. You can't help someone if you can't find them.  Because of our low run numbers we try to exercise the trucks at least once a month.  We'll play hide and seek, where someone (usually me) goes to a location and the firefighters are to respond to that location as if it were a fire (w/o lights and sirens).

Ambulance assist was mentioned.  We're big on that as well.  But if you don't know what do and how to do it you are an obstacle. If we are called to assist we intend the EMS to do patient work.  Getting the gurney out of the rig, getting a back board, carrying supplies and monitors, getting those things in and out of a house are all our job.  We'll pull the ambulance up to the firehouse and show firefighter's all that stuff.  We train on what to touch and what NOT to touch, where it goes in the ambulance, on and on. Oh, and also on placing our equipment as blockers to protect them. 

It does help when everyone on the ambulance crew is either a firefighter or married to one.

During cold weather we sometimes do tabletop events.  (Between me and the grandkids I have access to a lot of toys including firetrucks.)  Set up scenarios, car in the ditch, tanker accident, house fire, etc and figure out what to do and not to do.  There has been a lot of emphasis lately on equipment placement to protect responders on scene.  We can play that out a lot easier on a tabletop, then sometimes take it outside and do it in real time.

Something we're doing Saturday is a site visit.  We are meeting another department at a local fertilizer plant.  What do we do if...?   The toughest part is getting firefighters to realize if the building catches fire they would rather it burned to the ground than squirt water on it and spread pesticides downstream.

Unload and reload the firetrucks.  If you need a tool, where is it on the truck?

We are constantly recruiting.  That means you have people on the dept who have been there a long time ... one guy over 50 years.  Put them to use training the newbies.  If you know it all it's time to pass that along to someone else.

Like many rural departments we are often short staffed at certain times of the year.  Not everyone can be on a RIT team, but everyone can learn how to make every truck pump water.  Our basic requirements are you must be breathing and able to stand upright.  I had a girl one time who joined when she was 17.  She couldn't actively respond until her 18th birthday.  She's never driven a truck but she knows how to get a truck to make water.

RADIO OPERATION AND PROCEDURES! (yes, it is  hot point) Radios don't do any one a bit of good if you don't know how to use them. Plain languages trumps 10-codes 99% of the time.  The only 10 code you really need to know is 10-79 (that involves the coroner)

Here'a  freebie:  I learned 30 years ago selling typewriters if I showed someone they didn't retain it.  But it I talked them through it with their fingers touching the buttons they learned.  Same thing holds here.  During training night I tell them to slap my fingers if I do it instead of telling them how to do it.  You know how HARD that is?