The Poplarville Knights of Columbus presented the Poplarville Fire Department with a plaque of appreciation on Tuesday.

KOC member Frank Vaccarella presented Poplarville Fire Chief Jonathan Head with the award to honor the department’s work in the community.

“It’s just to let them know the community is behind them and appreciates everything they do,” Vaccarella said. “We want them to know they’re not alone, the good guys are worth it and we’re going to support them.”

The Poplarville KOC from St. Joseph’s Catholic Church held their annual Blue Mass recently to honor emergency responders and law enforcement with similar plaques, Vaccarella said.

“We’re really appreciative of it,” Head said. “We do it because we love having the ability to help people and we love to protect our community and it just means so much more whenever we have that support.”

Head was appointed Fire Chief about a year and a half ago, he said, and has been working to increase the department’s involvement in the community.

“This is home, my wife has a business here, my kids go to school here, I have a vested interest here and hopefully I’ll continue to be here for a while,” he said.

Fire departments around the nation have been suffering from a decreased volunteer base, Head said.

The Poplarville Fire Department is working with local volunteer departments to ensure calls aren’t being left unattended, he said.

“Though we’re the city fire department of Poplarville we support everyone in our community,” Head said, who has served as a firefighter in the state for 13 years.

Interacting with the community is one of his highest priorities, he said.

The main goal of interacting with the community is to create an “understanding that the good guys are coming to help,” Head said.

This will be done partially through fire prevention and safety programs at Poplarville elementary schools next month, he said.

Head is also working to improve the department’s class rating to help the community have a lower insurance rate, which will promote growth in the long run, he said.

“If we’re not handling emergency calls were trying to improve ourselves and our department,” Head said.

He said this is, in part, being achieved through continual training operations.

The department will soon merge facilities with the Poplarville Police Department, Head said, helping the city be more fiscally responsible and efficient.