Fire! Volunteer?

txdon · Dec 5, 2007

Bird, the difference is that the county or incorporate area has set aside some money for fire protection, there may even be a special TAX for it. We have a fundraiser meal and an auction once a year, which everyone works like crazy on and then take off the next 11 months recovering.

Bird, Lee County Peanut Company was on the local internet auction block this morning, can't find it now. Just in case your interested.

($1.3mil)

Bird · Dec 6, 2007

Don, I thought maybe the Lee County Peanut Company was just closing down because the farmers in that area weren't going to be growing peanuts in the future, which is what happened to an area north of Dallas. But with it on the auction block, it sounds like it's staying in business; just going to be new owners. Or is it just the value of the property that people are bidding on?

dmccarty · Dec 6, 2007

The article was in the Dec 2007/Jan 2008 Progressive Farmer.

Later,
Dan

jinman · Dec 8, 2007

txdon said:
Bird, the difference is that the county or incorporate area has set aside some money for fire protection, there may even be a special TAX for it. We have a fundraiser meal and an auction once a year, which everyone works like crazy on and then take off the next 11 months recovering.

Bird, Lee County Peanut Company was on the local internet auction block this morning, can't find it now. Just in case your interested. ($1.3mil)

I think I found it...

Lee County Peanut Auction

scott_vt · Dec 8, 2007

Mornin Don,
Well lets see, been a volunteer since 1984, since then I have held the rank of, Asst Engineer, Second Lt, First Lt, Captain 97-98, Fire Commissioner 2000 to present, chairman of that board for 3 1/2 yrs.

Daytime response is very difficult in our town, its not like years ago when everyone worked in town and could actually leave work to respond ! Those days are gone, people are commuting and the only real help left in town are those that are retired or second shift people that are available ! So far we have been able to do the job, but I can potentially see problems down the road !!!

In all its been a good experience for me and both my sons, the youngest boy graduated from college with a degree in Fire Science and Arson Investigation and is presently a paid fireman for the city of Danbury. My oldest boy volunteers and is presently First Lt for our company. I have met many great people in the fire service, and some of my closest friends are involved in the same organization ! My 2 cents !

Bird · Dec 8, 2007

jinman said:
I think I found it...

Lee County Peanut Auction

Yep, you found it, Jim. You don't know what you missed if you never knew Mr. & Mrs. Sell who used to own that place. I guess at least 15 to 17 years, we stopped in there on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, on our way to Port Aransas to spend Thanksgiving with my parents. Of course I learned about it from my parents, so I'm not sure how often they visited there. But each year I bought 100 to 300 pounds of raw shelled peanuts. Some years, they were there working; other years no one was around. If no one was around, I went across the street to a pay phone and called Mrs. Sell at home. Mr. Sell would come down in his pickup. He had a hoist arrangement in the back of the pickup so he could hoist himself out and into a wheelchair apparently, though I never saw him do it. Instead, he'd just give me the keys to unlock the place, go in, and get what I wanted, and lock up again and pay him. I remember one year, the dryer was running (sounds like a jet engine), the warehouse wasn't locked; just the office, but no one around, so I went and called Mrs. Sell. She said they'd all gone to lunch and be back in about 30 minutes, but that she could call one of them to come right now if I needed them to.. I told her to never mind about calling, that we'd go somewhere and eat lunch ourselves and see them after lunch. You couldn't find better country folks to deal with. Hope they find a buyer half as good as the Sells were.

deere755 · Dec 9, 2007

I have been a volunteer since 1986 and still enjoy it very much. I thought I was ready to give it up last summer but found I missed it after being off for a month so I rejoined and have no interest in ever leaving again. We have alot of problems with getting daytime help like everyone else we are a small town with no jobs, so everyone commutes to other towns for work.

Someone was saying that in Illinois that congress is trying to pass new law that employers have to excuse employees for being late or not being there at all in case of a fire, and have to excuse them from work if they are on the job and get a call. I am not sure if this is true or not. This could be a big help to small rural VFD's if it is true.