The volunteer firefighter, and volunteerism in general, is a sadly dying breed these days. These are people who are willing to be on call at all times of the day for no compensation or reward other than the satisfaction of knowing they may have made a difference in someone’s life. Fortunately, volunteerism in Westmoreland County is still supported enthusiastically, and at the start of the year, many of these volunteer fire departments have a banquet where new volunteers are brought into the fold, awards are handed out, and delicious food is enjoyed by all.
Oak Grove’s Volunteer Fire Department had such a shindig the first week of this month, and when last Saturday rolled in, it was the Westmoreland Volunteer Fire Department’s turn to feast.
As people gathered at the firehouse in Montross, the weather suddenly remembered that it was, in fact, the middle of winter, and changed the temperature accordingly. Fortunately, the food brought to the event by Denson’s was more than up to the task of helping warm everyone up. From seafood appetizer staples to a main course of roast beef, chicken, mashed potatoes, and a capper in the form of peach cobbler, nobody could say they had been disappointed by the night’s offerings.
Once all in attendance were satiated, the ceremonies began.
Eddie Weston, president of WVFD, gave shoutouts and welcomes to the guests, which included the likes of Sheriff C.O. Balderson and Supervisor Dorothy Tate, as well as a shoutout to Cople District Fire Department, which was covering fire calls for Westmoreland County that night so that the banquet could be held.
“We have to honor God in all ways,” stated the guest speaker, Pastor Thomas Preston of the Pope’s Creek Church. “No matter how He reacts, where He is, and what He gives, you have to praise him for it. And tonight, I give praise to God for the men and women of this fire department. I get to live at peace in Bushfield knowing there’s a community of volunteers who are willing to wake up in the middle of the night to provide a service.
“The problem in this nation nowadays is that less and less volunteers are showing up,” he continued. “Oak Grove probably feels it, and you probably do too. Wherever there are volunteers, they’re feeling it. There is a lack of a servant’s heart today. All of you carry one. You are willing to wake up in the middle of the night. You all have other jobs you have to do… The difference between a servant’s heart and someone getting paid is you’re not looking for anything else than providing a service.
“Today, we’ve struck into the tendency of doing things in return for something,” Preston lamented. “When you guys show up in the middle of the night, whether it’s a fire, a car accident, or something else, you’re just hoping you can get home at a decent hour or giving a prayer for those you have to help. You may appreciate the thank yous and the donations afterwards, but that’s not why you came to begin with. You came to serve. I think that’s where we’re going wrong, today, because we all just want to receive things.
“But how do you get to the part of serving?” he asked. “You know I’ll bring Jesus into it. When you ask me to speak, I’m going to talk Jesus. And my answer can be found in the Book of Mark, Chapter 10: ‘Even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom to many.’ When you show up at the fire department in the middle of the night, you all show up to serve.”
Pastor Thomas then told a story of a firefighter by the name of Cadwell on the West Coast that fell through the roof of a burning building. What should have been a certain plummet of doom into a blazing inferno, including a backdraft, turned into miraculous survival.
A firefighter captain, thinking the unwitting pit diver was dead, but wanting to make sure that his family was able to have an open casket funeral, had a fire hose hung down the hole and put on full blast. One can imagine the captain’s surprise when Cadwell turned out to have instead been saved from the blaze and would return to his job in 10 months.
“He put God as the reason for his survival,” Pastor Preston stated. “Miracles just kept happening through the ordeal. He narrowly missed getting impaled during the fall, got his fall broken by a cage, and then came the water.
“The firefighter captain, who wasn’t even a Christian at the time, would later say that he felt he had been told by God to make the call for the hose line,” the Pastor continued. “The firefighter that fell down was talking to God, and the captain on the roof was trying to save just enough so that his family could have a decent funeral. At the end of the day, both of them got rewarded. One got to keep his life, and the other gained life. Jesus Christ will put out the fire in anything that you have going on in your life. All you have to do is invite Him in.
“Each of you should use every gift you have received to serve others,” he concluded. “The unique gifts we have received, we aren’t told by God use it to go hunting, to work, make dinner, or anything for ourselves, but to go serve others. Your gift, that He has given you, you all have executed that over a number of years.”
Once his address was complete, volunteer officers were sworn in, awards were presented, and with a final benediction from Ronnie Saunders, everyone started to filter out of the building and off home.
Unfortunately, Jay Hynson, the WVFD’s chief up until then (now the deputy chief), was not available to give a year-end report on what had taken place over the course of 2022.
This Saturday, the Colonial Beach Volunteer Fire Department will be having its installation banquet as well. Taking place at the firehouse on 312 Colonial Avenue, the dinner begins at 7 p.m. and will be provided by Angelo’s.
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