Some of you may not be aware of this, but I am on my third stint at the Polk County Enterprise, having logged in a total of 18½ years as of this writing. The times I left were not the result of unhappiness or dissatisfaction, but either life changes (starting my family) or other job opportunities that came my way that I felt I needed to try.
I share this with you to let you know that over those 18½ years I’ve seen, covered and written about a lot of things – some of them gloriously joyful and others absolutely tragic.
One constant that I’ve witnessed time and again over the years, however, is the first-rate work and efforts of the local volunteer fire departments (VFDs) throughout our county that cover their respective territories, but also join together and work as one team when needed. These VFDs are Livingston, Onalaska, Goodrich, Segno, Scenic Loop, Indian Springs, South Polk County, Corrigan, Alabama-Coushatta Indian Nation and Holiday Lake Estates.
We are blessed beyond measure to have these loyal, giving folks. For any disaster we may experience, they are the first ones on the scene and usually the very last ones to leave.
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but just off the top of my head I can think of 11 individual occurrences/disasters when these selfless individuals left their families, homes and jobs for the sake of their community. I can think of four different hurricanes – Rita in 2005, Ike in 2008, Harvey in 2017 and Beryl earlier this summer.
There was the tornado in April 2020, Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 and the Space Shuttle Columbia explosion in February 2003 when dozens of them participated in search and recovery efforts, working 12-14-hour days searching the forests of East Texas for pieces of the exploded craft and, more importantly, remains of the seven crew members.
In addition to the devastating flooding they responded to earlier this spring, there was also the “Easter flood” of April 1999. The October 1994 flood brought then-U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry Cisneros to Polk County to tour the flooded homes in the Goodrich area. Severe flooding in May 1990 brought then-President George H.W. Bush to Polk County where he met with emergency officials below the dam. I was there, covering both of these events.
I’ve actually lost count of the number of presidential disaster declarations Polk County has received over the years.
Our volunteer firefighters played leading roles in every one of these events, many of which lasted for days and weeks at a time. They left their own homes and families, who often were without electricity or essentials themselves, to go help other people’s families – yours, mine and the families of strangers.
And we haven’t even touched on the gruesome things they witness in the line of duty – literally the stuff of nightmares that no one should have to see.
October 6-12 is National Fire Prevention Week, and the National Fire Protection Association has announced that this year’s theme is “Smoke alarms: Make them work for you!” The goal of this year’s campaign is to educate everyone about the importance of having working smoke alarms in the home.
There are so many fairly effortless things we can do to help our local firefighters. Install smoke alarms and make sure they have working batteries. Teach your children about ‘stop, drop and roll.’ Have an escape plan for your family and consider having the occasional fire drill at your home or place of business.
But probably the most important thing of all that you can do to help your local fire departments and show your appreciation is to support them in their fundraising efforts. Write the check. Buy the barbecue sandwich or the catfish plate or the bowl of chili. Purchase raffle tickets for the handmade quilts, the side of beef, the metal yard art or whatever it is that they happen to be raffling. Just write the check. And to all the firefighters, I salute you.
