WEST PARIS - Members of Tri-Town Rescue Service and its board of directors said Monday that they want to keep the service active.

The meeting, held before selectmen and the public, aimed at addressing the source of recent conflict between the Tri-Town board and its employees and steps that have been taken toward resolving it.

"There's obviously been a lack of communication between us and our board of directors," said Allison Ross, the interim chief of the service.

Ross said employees were "left out of the loop" during the restructuring of the board's bylaws, but that the board has been more inclusive in the past months.

"This is a step forward in communication," said employee Nigel Lussier of the meeting. "They've been a little more forward with us in the past months."

Board Chairwoman Dorene Wilbur said the interaction between the board and employees has improved, and the board intends to keep Tri-Town functional.

"I don't see any problem why Tri-Town can't go ahead," she said.

Tri-Town employees said Monday that they were against the firing of former service Chief Norman St. Pierre in June.

Wilbur said she was unable to give the reason why St. Pierre was fired because it was a personnel issue.

However, St. Pierre has said he was fired for hiring an employee who carried a concealed weapon and not doing proper background checks on employees. St. Pierre had also accused the board of misappropriating funds, which the board's attorney has denied.

"Maybe if a lot of rumors were stopped, we would all be better off," Wilbur said. "That is hurting everyone."

Wilbur said a new board will be coming in on Thursday, although some towns have not yet elected directors to serve a two-year term. Tri-Town covers the towns of West Paris, Greenwood, Woodstock, and Sumner, as well as Milton Plantation.

Town Manager Vern Maxfield of Woodstock said Lee Graham was appointed on Aug. 19 and will become the town's new representative on the board. Cindy Norton, treasurer of Sumner, said Susan Litchfield will be reappointed as the town's representative.

West Paris will elect a representative on Thursday, and Greenwood will elect a representative on Sept. 2. The towns are currently represented by Mary Emery and Rodney Harrington, respectively.

The board's new bylaws, which are available at the town offices of the represented areas, state that the board of directors will include up to nine people. Each town will appoint a representative, and the remaining five members would be elected by the existing directors.

The bylaws allow the board to remove directors by vote, and also state that the board may remove the service chief. Employees of the service cannot serve on the board.

Directors do not need to be residents of Maine, but Harrington said the board is subject to state laws.

Selectmen in Greenwood and West Paris have withheld a quarterly payment to the service. Future meetings will determine whether the funds will be released.

"They felt they were not being informed and updated by the Tri-Town board, as they felt they should," Greenwood Town Manager Kim Sparks said.

Greenwood and West Paris have also sent out requests for proposals to Tri-Town and three other ambulance services to determine whether they should change services. Sparks said one of the requirements of the proposals would include a written contract, which Tri-Town does not hold with any of the towns it services.

Sumner selectmen made a conditional vote last month to change service to PACE Ambulance, but a final decision has not been made on the matter.

Ross said the service has a mutual aid agreement with PACE for emergency calls, and that Tri-Town will aim to acquire more paramedics. However, she said basic responders at Tri-Town will be able to arrive before PACE in the coverage area and provide immediate medical care.

"They will save your life," Ross said.

Employee Chris DeCapua said the concern of the service was not politics, but providing a rescue service.

"We're going to be there," DeCapua said. "That's the bottom line."