GAMBIER — A select group of the Kenyon College seniors who graduated on Saturday bore a special distinction. The four — Jack Robling of Larchmont, N.Y.; Ben McGee of Austin, Texas; Jarrod Sowell of Brooklyn, N.Y.; and Forest Malchow of Warren, N.J. — have all been members of the College Township Fire Department during their four years at college.

Recruited during the college’s fall activities fair for incoming freshmen, the four joined with a goal of helping break down the wall that can spring up between self-contained institutions of higher learning and the communities that host them. Only one of the four, McGee, had a prior familiarity with firefighting.

“I had friends when I was in high school who were involved with firefighting,” he said, and their stories of excitement combined with an urge to give something back to the community prompted him to volunteer.

Sowell saw it as an amazing way to get involved, and Malchow said it has been a great way to meet the member of the Gambier community.

Robling, the Designated In Charge Student, said it was a very special task with which to be charged.

“Not many students anywhere get to do this,” he said.

The students said they averaged around 200 runs each per year, although they didn’t have exact figures on hand. Sowell will be leaving to serve with the U.S. Army, while Malchow will be moving to Washington, D.C., to work as an economic consultant. McGee, whose focus was on international studies, is still considering his options, and Robling is heading back east after graduation.