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Our New Firehouse
Our Future ... Your Future

SEE YOU THERE

The Hyattsville VFD's 1997

OPEN HOUSE

Saturday Sept. 27th
11 am until 4 pm

Our Best Ever!
Details Here!

Inside Online

Striving To Be The Best
Sadness After Rescue
New Post For Chief
Open House Plans
Web Site Gets Noticed
We Need You!
New Additions & More

Hyattsville VFD
6200 Belcrest Road
Hyattsville, MD 20782

An Online Edition of Our 1997 Community Fund Drive Newsletter

Striving To Be The Best


The last year has been both a tough and exciting one for the members of the Hyattsville Volunteer Fire Department

On May 25th, state law closed our biggest single source of funding: charitable gaming, leaving the dedicated volunteers of the department searching for new and innovative ways to ensure that the level of services we provide to the community never decline.

In the same year, we were proud to place a new 100-foot aerial ladder truck and new basic life support ambulance in service. The combined cost of these units was more than $700,000 -- all paid for through community donations and our charitable gaming program. No tax dollars were used.

In the last year we were able to raise nearly $35,000 for Carlie Hogarth, a 2-year-old Hyattsville girl who remains in need of a liver transplant. We kicked off her campaign with an initial $25,000 contribution and held boot drives to raise nearly $10,000 more. With the community's support, more than $100,000 was raised for Carlie's post-transplant care. Our membership continues to rise and is among the most active of any volunteer fire department in the area.

More than 60 individual volunteer firefighters and emergency medical providers have responded to the community's calls for help in the last six months, with nearly two dozen other volunteer members helping in other areas such as administration, training and fund raising.

Last December we held our first "Community Relations Committee" meeting. This program invites local residents into the firehouse to talk about issues and concerns. It is important for the residents of our community to know what we as your volunteer fire department are able to provide on a daily basis. All this with a dedicated group of men and women volunteering their time to save others.

Our leadership also continues to exemplify the quality of HVFD volunteers. Chief Donald Moltrup, who has been the fire chief here for more than 26 years, was recently appointed by Prince George's County Fire Chief A.D. Bell as Volunteer Deputy Chief. This position makes Moltrup the highest ranking volunteer fire officer in the county and is one of the most unique leadership positions for a combination volunteer/career fire and rescue department in the nation.

On the administrative side, our president, Jonathan Aaron Ransom, is just finishing up his one-year term as president of the Prince George's County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association. Ransom was the first African-American leader of the organization, which oversees the volunteer fire service within the county.

And our web site, located at http://www.hyattsvillevfd.org, continues to grow and is one of the most popular fire/rescue sites on the internet, showing the nation and the world why the Hyattsville VFD is a progressive, well-trained organization with hard-working, dedicated volunteers.

The next year will be equally as challenging and exciting.

Our plans to replace our aging fire station continue. Our Open House on September 27th is planned as our biggest ever and will be the kick-off point for a new multi-year campaign to check all residential smoke detectors within our response area. All this by a volunteer fire department funded primarily by community donations.


Copyright 1997, CoolWriter Publications, Inc and the Hyattsville Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. No material on this site may be reproduced in any way without written permission. E-Mail for more information.
Fund Drive Newsletter Produced by CoolWriter Publications