Volunteer firefighters dedicate countless hours to improving the quality of life for their community, with local help and support. On Sept. 10, the Henleyfield Volunteer Fire Department will recognize the community’s support by holding their third annual community appreciation event.
“The community is the reason we are able to do what we enjoy doing. They keep us running and we want to show how grateful we are for them,” John Odle, Henleyfield volunteer firefighter, said. “This event is the least we could do to thank everyone for their support.”
During the event, the department will host a variety of activities for people of all ages. The fire department will perform a vehicle extrication demonstration where they use the Jaws of Life to open a motor vehicle, simulating what would happen if someone were trapped inside. Also, there will be new firefighter games, an ice cream contest, free food and plenty of activities for children.
Other departments and businesses will perform demonstrations of their own and provide games to the participants, Odle said. Home Depot will have a crafting activity booth for children and The American Red Cross will have a booth for residents to sign up for residential smoke detectors.
To kick-off the event, the Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department will be holding a K-9 and arson demonstration for the participants.
“These demonstrations are really a crowd pleaser but they do have importance behind them,” Odle said. “The purpose of the event, besides showing our gratitude, is to educate the community on the proper way to fight fires and how to avoid putting yourself in danger.”
At the end of the event, the Henleyfield Volunteer Fire Department will host a raffle followed by an auction to raise money for the department, Odle said.
Raffle tickets are $5 each and the drawing will be held at 3 p.m. Grand prizes include a Browning 308 with scope and case, a Browning 410 pump shotgun, Savage 17 semi automatic, a Barnett ghost 350 crossbow with case, large Big Green Egg cooker, Yeti Tundra cooler, Michael Kors purse and marketing wallet, nine piece outdoor patio set, Woodhouse spa package and $500 cash prize. Other various door prizes will be included in the drawing, Odle said.
The money raised from this event will go toward the Henleyfield Volunteer Fire Station #2, which was recently constructed at a site off of Rocky Road.
“The community has been great to us for over 30 years. This is just our way to thank them while meeting new people of the community or catching up with those that have been with us for a while,” Odle said.
The community appreciation event at the Henleyfield Volunteer Fire Department Station is free to attend and will start around 10 a.m. and end after the auction, which starts at 3:30 p.m.