Our 30th annual Chicken BBQ is in the record books. The turnout was smaller than in the past, however everyone seemed to have a great time. The kayak was won by a family across the channel from the fire station. Between the Fourth of July and the Chicken BBQ, we did well with our fundraising projects. Again, we say thanks for your tremendous support.

Number Your House!

Several weeks ago, my EMT partner and I were responding in the ambulance to a very serious medical emergency. We were updated every few minutes by our dispatch center; each update indicated a patient in worsening distress.

Now, no matter how long you have been responding as an EMT, this type of call raises your stress level. There is little that tops this kind of focus. But looking for house numbers does!

We found a number here and there as we responded and were able to piece together the house location. In the end, little or no time was lost looking for the address, because we guessed right. But what if we were wrong?

Please take a little time and number your home. This will not only help you, but your whole neighborhood benefits. Your house number may be telling us we are going the right way or we are getting close to the call address.

Andover’s safety services – EMS, fire, and police – need your help. That much added stress is very bad for us. Please help us help you: Number your home! (See John Kinney’s article on page ?? of the September issue.)

Arizona Wildfire

Tragedy struck the fire service family when a wildfire in Arizona took the life of 19 firefighters. Fires of this size are extremely rare in New England; however, any fire is capable of turning deadly.

Thanks to my good friend, retired firefighter Marty Dustin, the Andover Fire Department sent a department shirt to Arizona, where Marty placed it on the memorial for the brave 19. (See Marty’s article at AndoverBeacon.com/?p=6539.)

Watch Out for School Buses

Our children are back in school. Where in heck did the summer go?

School buses are out in force, safely transporting our precious cargo to classes. Let’s all give them the space they need, and remember: they stop all traffic to make safe lanes of travel for our children. With little effort beyond driver patience, we will have a great and safe school year. (For more information, see the special notice on page ?? of the September issue.)