CSFA Eleventh Annual Hall of Fame Dinner
The Connecticut State Firefighters Association
Eleventh Annual
Hall of Fame Dinner
Thursday, April 4, 2019
6:00-7:00 pm Open Bar
7:15 pm Dinner
Aqua Turf – Mulberry Street, Southington
Cost $40.00 per person
For tickets: CSFA Office (860) 423 -5799,
William Davin 203-650-4432
or William Halstead 203-948-7129
ALL TICKETS MUST BE PAID FOR BY April 1, 2019
Class of 2019 Inductees
James C. Koser – Litchfield Fire Company
Marquam R. Johnson – Barkhamsted Fire District
James M. Eastwood – Fairfield Fire Department
Denis McCarthy – Fairfield Fire Department
Louis DeMici – Danbury Fire Department/UPFFA
John Brett McAllister – Waterbury/Colebrook Fire Department
John Sullivan – Naugatuck Fire Department
John Oates – East Hartford Fire Department
William DeFord – Connecticut Fire Academy
Joseph C. Armstrong – Andover/Columbia Fire Department
Daniel Keogh – Poquonnock Bridge/Mashantucket Fire
Department
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, January 4, 2019
Happy New Year!
We ask all of our CSFA members to continue to urge their respective legislators (especially the newlyelected) to join the Fire/EMS Caucus and attend the meetings during the 2019 session. The goal of the bipartisan caucus co-chairs is to pull together greater support for us and to create better understanding of issues related to the Fire Service among legislators. All legislators are welcome to participate and caucus meetings are open to the public.
The Legislative Session for the Connecticut General Assembly begins on January 9th, 2019.
Please also find attached the list of our legislative priorities contained in the minutes of our annual CSFA Legislative Meeting held this past November. I remind everyone that inevitably other issues concerning the Fire Service will arise during the coming weeks, however, we should make every effort to stay focused on the priorities that we have already agreed are our most important issues.
Click the links below to download then entire update, and the minutes of the November Legislative Committee meeting.
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, December 28, 2018
Everyone,
It is with great sadness that I share the news of the passing of the son of Representative Linda Orange, Matthew Orange, 41, of Colchester. Matt fought a tough battle against cancer and died December 21st, 2018.
For more details, the following link will take you to the obituary provided by the Aurora-McCarthy Funeral Home: https://www.auroramccarthyfuneralhome.com/notices/Matthew-Orange
Representative Orange, a veteran legislator from the 48th District and Deputy Speaker of the House, was a chief proponent of Public Act 16-10 that was passed into law and paved the way for compensation for volunteer and career firefighters who suffer from job-related cancers. Representative Orange has also fought every year for increased funding for the Fire Service, particularly for our Regional Fire Schools.
CSFA President John Carew, Legislative Chairman Lew Clark and the Colchester Hayward Volunteer Fire Company ask that our association membership make an effort to show support for the Orange family at
this difficult time.
Calling hours will be held on Sunday, Dec. 30, 2018 from 1 – 2:30 PM at the Aurora-McCarthy Funeral Home, 167 Old Hartford Rd., Colchester. A memorial service and celebration of his life will follow immediately at the funeral home at 2:30. Burial will be private in the Marlboro Center Cemetery.
Donations in Matt’s memory may be made to the Colchester Hayward Volunteer Fire Co., 52, Old Hartford Rd., Colchester 06415. For online condolences and flowers and gifts, please visit: https://www.auroramccarthyfuneralhome.com/notices/Matthew-Orange
Sincerely,
Leon Collins
Legislative Representative
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, December 21, 2018
Everyone,
Mark your calendars! Save the date! Fire Service Day during the upcoming legislative session will be held on May 29th, 2019 in the North Lobby on the first floor of the State Capitol Building.
The co-chairs of the Fire/EMS Caucus have not yet set a date for their next meeting which I expect to be held after the First of the New Year. I will let everyone know when that meeting will happen as soon as I can.
Just in case you missed my last legislative update, I have included again a video link of the most recent Fire/EMS Caucus meeting that was held on December 12th…
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, December 14, 2018
This week’s CSFA Legislative update from Leon Collins has a summary of the Fire/EMS Caucus meeting that was held earlier this week. Also attached is the full list of CSFA legislative priorities for the upcoming 2019 session of the Connecticut General Assembly.
West Shore 100th Anniversary Committee donates leftover funds to the CSFA Memorial Committee
At the regular meeting of the Connecticut State Firefighters Association Memorial Committee, held November 28th at the Connecticut Fire Academy in Windsor Locks, Kevin McKeon, representing the West Shore 100th Anniversary Committee, presented a check to CFSA President John Carew in the amount of $856.98. This check will be well used as we prepare to fund the restoration of the Monument. It is quite an undertaking, this monument is there to honor all Connecticut Firefighters who have made the ultimate sacrifice.
“Jackie and I are a part of the Memorial Committee and are thinking of more ways to raise funds for this worthy effort” said McKeon. “Our 100th Anniversary organization agreed that any leftover funds be donated to the CSFA Memorial Committee to be earmarked for the restoration of the Connecticut Fallen Firefighters Monument at the Connecticut Fire Academy.”
If you would like to contribute to the CSFA Memorial fund, go to the
Connecticut Firefighters Memorial website for more information!
National Volunteer Fire Council Resources Available
The NVFC is pleased to offer this monthly email to our state associations and other stakeholders to help you more effectively and easily communicate national fire and emergency service messages to your members. Here are resources and tools for December 2018.
New Animated Videos: The NVFC has released two new animated videos as part of our Serve Strong health and safety campaign. A video on leadership reminds fire service leaders to be available and promote open communication in their departments (access on YouTube or Vimeo). A video on teamwork promotes working together to prevent injuries (access on YouTube or Vimeo). Suggested social media posts about each video are attached.
First Responder Incentive Program: FCA is offering exclusive incentives for firefighters and emergency responders on eligible vehicles. FCA products include Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram. A clickable flyer and suggested social media posts and image are attached to help you communicate this promotion to your audience.
Fire/EMS Helpline: The holiday season can be especially stressful or difficult for volunteer responders. This is a good time to remind people of the help available through the Fire/EMS Helpline. Suggested social media posts are attached. Also attached is an article on managing stress from the NVFC’s Helpletter publication.
Recruitment Messages: If you are looking for fire service recruitment messages to distribute through your organization’s Facebook or Twitter accounts, you can find content to share from the Make Me A Firefighter social media pages. Follow the campaign on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MakeMeAFirefighter/ and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/findthefighter, and feel free to share any content from these pages.
Volunteer Retention: Many departments today struggle to retain enough volunteers to respond, while many volunteer firefighters and EMS providers struggle to find enough time to meet all of their obligations. In a recent article from the NVFC Dispatch, Tiger Schmittendorf looks at how departments can more effectively address these issues so that everybody wins. The article is attached, or link to it on the NVFC web site here: https://www.nvfc.org/a-new-pyramid-scheme-for-your-volunteer-department/
Holiday Giving: December is a time many people give, whether presents to their loved ones, donations to their favorite charities, or even gifts to themselves. There are many ways that these gifts can help support the NVFC. Attached are some suggested social media posts that promote gift of membership, AmazonSmile, and direct donations.
If you have any questions or need additional information, please let me know.
Sincerely,
Kimberly Quiros,
Chief of Communications
kimberly@nvfc.org
Download individual resources:
Article – Getting a Handle on Stress – .docx format
Article – A New Pyramid Scheme for Your Volunteer Department – .docx format
Social Media Posts for December 2018 – .docx format
Flyer for FCA First Responder Incentive Program – .pdf format
Image – Ram image for FCA posts – .png format
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, December 7, 2018
Everyone,
The first meeting of the Fire/EMS Caucus for the 2019 Legislative Session will be held on Wednesday December 12th, 2018 at the Legislative Office Building in Room 2B at 10:30AM. We ask all members of the Fire Service to attend Fire EMS Caucus Meetings at the LOB in Class A uniform when schedules permit. We really need to begin the session with a strong showing of support from the Fire Service at this first caucus meeting that will be attended by both returning and newly elected legislators from across the state. Last year, about 40 members of the Fire Service attended the
first caucus meeting prior to the beginning of the session. It would be great if we could duplicate or surpass that level of attendance at the caucus meeting this coming Wednesday. We really need to show the legislators who are trying to help us that we appreciate their efforts.
Statement regarding Fraudulent Phone Solicitation
During the past few months, there have been an increasing number of calls made to homes and businesses across the state in which telephone solicitors have been telling people they are raising money for the “Volunteer Firefighters Association” or organization name similar to that.
The Connecticut State Firefighters Association represents 21,000 volunteers and 4,500 career firefighters and we would like to make it clear that our organization never solicits by telephone.
