The Real America

The Real America
What would draw people out of their homes at a moment’s notice, 24/7, during any occasion, to risk their health and lives? It is this: The love for their fellow citizens and their safety. Several of our local community organizations and public officials have banded together in the spirit of cooperation to provide services and an additional safety net to blanket our local communities and the surrounding areas.
Between the Escanaba Township Fire Department (E.T.F.D.), the City of Gladstone, and the Gladstone Public Safety Department, a cooperative spirit began with officials discussing the possibilities of increasing safety in covering fire and other tragic accidents. In order to accomplish this, a willingness to change, listen, trust, and an openness in honest communication needed to be established between the various personalities and community boundaries. With this in place, the wheels of change began to move around a central vision which was, “the ability to provide additional coverage by the E.T.F.D., Gladstone Public Safety, and volunteers to the people living in Escanaba Township and the City of Gladstone.”
On August 12, 2013, the Automatic Aide Agreement, an agreement between public entities to provide fire protection services for both areas, was created from this vision. The entities pledged that both departments would be paged at the time of a fire. Fire trucks and equipment could be shared and driven by either fire department.
Other benefits that resulted from the agreement are:

• Decreased fire rating for both communities
  
• Decreased response times to fires for both departments
  
• Additional increase in personnel (five to six) responding to emergencies
  
• Joint training for both departments two to three hours per week for those that can attend
  
• A saving of tax dollars for both communities
  
• The City of Gladstone’s land donation for the Escanaba Township fire hall
  
• The donation of various foundations, grants, and donations from businesses and private individuals to the Escanaba Township Fire Department
  
• Openness and communication between both departments where everyone is cross-trained to use all of the equipment from both departments
  
• A blanket of safety for firefighters with public safety on call alongside them         
  

As October is Fire Prevention Month, the firefighters interviewed asked that parents take the time to review and drill the following safety tips with your children:  

• How to evacuate from the home
  

• Identify a common meeting place outside
  
• When providing information, give the house address, not just a telephone number, and the full first and last names (no nicknames)
  
• Attend a Smoke House demonstration
  

When we work together as townships, counties, communities, cities, states, and nation, we can overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. That is the America we truly know! One firefighter summed it up:  “God told me to be humble. Ask for charity and help and you will receive this aid and make it a safer place for all.”  He did and we are witnessing the results.
My personal thanks and prayers go to all of our local firefighters from so many townships and communities for keeping us safe. Special thanks to the following people whose candid insights and discussion made this article possible: Matt Rian, Ron Robinson, Ray Hughes, Steve Belongie, and Tom Sealander.
If any communities or townships would be interested in information about automatic aide, you can call the following numbers:
Gladstone Public Safety (906) 428-3131
Matt Rian, Escanaba Twp. Fire Chief (906) 399-2757

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