This letter was written to the Editor of our local paper. It was written by my wife. I am sharing it here, and I am willing to bet that people in your community feel the same way. God bless! As the fire department concludes another November “pay” night, celebrating new firefighters, reflecting on the year, nominating a Firefighter of the Year, I reflect as a wife of a volunteer firefighter, and a mother of a volunteer firefighter, and a mother of a junior volunteer firefighter, why Firefighter of the Year, is never an honorary award given to the spouses. Our role as supporter, nurturer, councillor is very important. Our husbands or wives bodies and minds are exposed to many things I would not want to be exposed to, and yet, we must somehow try to understand and support them.We must teach our children that Daddy’s or Mommy’s tones of the pager, come before them sometimes. And not only does the firefighter wake from the tones of emergency in the middle of the night, but the supporting spouse and children are woken by the tones as well. I for one, am at home praying, waiting without knowing, changing plans, entertaining guests alone. As our spouses are out possibly putting their lives on the line, we are at home worrying, our children are wondering. Then our children join the department and we worry AND wonder alone! After reflecting, I shake my head, giggle at the silly idea of spouses receiving the title of Firefighter of the Year, and turn my thoughts back to all the firefighters who have never been nominated for Firefighter of the Year. Many of you, quietly putting in hours behind the scenes at the hall, doing all that needs to be done, that no one else thinks of. Many of you, volunteering time, energy, talents where the other firefighters don’t see you or even know what you do. You may be working behind the scenes, out of the main action at a call, because you have the training that requires you to be behind the scene, or maybe, you have less training than some of the firefighters at the moment, but you are still there, geared up and ready to serve as best as you can at that time. Some of you work long, physically intensive hours, or camp jobs, but as soon as you’re home on days off, family and the fire department are your priority. Many of you aren’t comfortable in leadership roles or being in the limelight, but you are excellent team players. Your role matters. You are all worthy of recognition. You all have servant hearts. You all have a rescuers heart. You all are courageous. You all understand sacrifice and dedication. You ALL give of yourselves to this community and that is so commendable. This is like a full time career, and yet it isn’t. You show up wholeheartedly, you give wholeheartedly. There’s no pay, no overtime, no vacation time pay, no career advancement. You’re there, simply because you care. You take it all on as a part time volunteer career, with a little bonus on pay night. There is no trophy, very little recognition, no perks, no bonuses, no RRSP contributions, no retirement package, no Christmas bonus, and yet, you feel blessed and thankful and anxious to serve, the next time your tones go off. YOU are all, Firefighter of the Year....and we, as spouses, and community, are grateful.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Nov 2014 04:24:10 +0000
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