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.
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, November 30, 2018
Everyone,
Beginning with this update, I will resume the weekly publication of legislative information for the Fire Service in Connecticut. You can expect to find the update on the listserv distributed by the office of the State Fire Administrator every Friday until the end of the 2019 legislative session. If you would like to receive a copy of this update by email, please contact me by email and I will add your name to my distribution list.
We held our annual CSFA Legislative Meeting last night and I would like to thank everyone who participated is helping us to create our list of legislative priorities for the Fire Service during the upcoming 2019 Legislative Session of the Connecticut General Assembly. Fire/EMS Caucus co-chair Representative Pat Boyd addressed the group at the beginning of the meeting. Fire EMS Caucus Co-chair Rep. Brian Ohler was not able to attend because of previously scheduled responsibilities within his district. Rep. Boyd spoke of the importance of continuing with the work of the caucus of legislators in the upcoming session. In the complete update linked below, I have included the letter sent out to all legislators inviting them to attend our next Fire/EMS Caucus Meeting on December 12th, 2018, at the Legislative Office Building in Room 2B at 10:30AM.
Light the Night for Fallen Firefighters
The 2018 National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend will be held October 6-7, 2018 in Emmitsburg, Maryland. For the second year, landmarks across the county will glow in respect to the fallen and their families for Light the Night for Fallen Firefighters. This nation-wide lighting is sponsored by the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, as part of the weekend.
In 2017 more than 30 iconic buildings and landmarks across the country were part of “Light the Night for Fallen Firefighters.” This year, we would like local fire departments to join in this tribute by lighting in red on Saturday, October 6th, the night of the Candlelight Service, or any time during the week of October 1st that you can. This would be an additional symbol of support and comfort to the families being honored and whose loved one is being remembered. Go to https://bit.ly/2mxNI3M to let us know that you will join this extraordinary display of recognition.
Find out more https://bit.ly/2ADAcoP, download the attached flyer, or follow the hashtag on twitter: #nffflightthenight2018
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, March 16, 2018
Everyone,
We’ve been told that we were successful convincing the General Law Committee to remove language
we opposed from SB-193 – AN ACT CONCERNING REVISIONS TO DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER
PROTECTION STATUTES. That language would have allowed vendor companies to transport gasoline for
mobile refueling in Connecticut.
HB-5381 – AN ACT IMPOSING A SURCHARGE ON CERTAIN PERSONAL RISK INSURANCE POLICIES TO FUND
REGIONAL FIRE SCHOOLS’ OPERATING BUDGETS AND CERTAIN FIREFIGHTER TRAINING COSTS did not
get voted Joint Favorable out of Insurance and Real Estate Committee this week. However, we are still
waiting to hear what’s going to happen to HB-5070 – AN ACT PROVIDING FUNDING FOR THE
FIREFIGHTER’S CANCER RELIEF FUND and HB-5080 – AN ACT CONCERNING FUNDING FOR REGIONAL FIRE TRAINING SCHOOLS. Both bills are presently still being considered by the Appropriations Committee.
The Committee Bill Deadline for Approps is March 26 and the JF deadline is April 5.
There is still time to submit written testimony for either of these HB 5070 or HB 5080 if you have not
done so already. Additional testimony will help to keep the spotlight on these important issues for the
Fire Service. Again, we need to make it clear to the members of Appropriations that we feel it makes
no sense for Connecticut to bond millions of dollars for much needed fire schools and fail to provide
funding to operate them.
All public hearing testimony, written & spoken, is public information. The Committee encourages
witnesses to submit a written statement and to condense oral testimony to a summary of that
statement. All public hearing testimony, written and spoken, is public information. As such, it
will be made available on the CGA website and will be indexed by internet search engines.
Also, the Public Safety and Security Committee will vote later today whether to JFS (Joint Favorable
Substitute) SB-278 – AN ACT CONCERNING MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS TRAINING AND SUICIDE
PREVENTION FOR POLICE OFFICERS (a.k.a. “The PTSD Bill).
Read more by downloading the full CSFA Legislative Update: 03-16-18 in PDF format.
Also, please read the CSFA 2018 FIRE SERVICE BILL TRACKING: 03-16-18.
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, March 14, 2018
Everyone,
The Fire Marshals ask that we join them as they oppose a SB-435 – AN ACT CONCERNING THE SALE AND
USE OF CONSUMER GRADE FIREWORKS. You can submit written and oral testimony. If you would like to
submit oral testimony, please contact me as soon as possible:
Written testimony needs to be in word or PDF format and emailed to gltestimony@cga.ct.gov.
Testimony should clearly state testifier name and related Bills. The Committee requests that
testimony be limited to matters related to the items on the Agenda. The first hour of the
hearing is reserved for Legislators, Constitutional Officers, State Agency Heads and Chief Elected
Municipal Officials. Speakers will be limited to three minutes of testimony.
https://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/cgabillstatus/cgabillstatus.asp?selBillType=Bill&bill_num=SB00435&which_
year=2018
Also, there will be a Public Hearing for SB-419 – AN ACT INCREASING THE PROPERTY TAX ABATEMENT
FOR VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS AND OTHER FIRST RESPONDERS. The hearing is scheduled for Friday,
March 16, 2018 at 11:15 A.M. in Room 1A of the LOB.
Please email written testimony in Word or PDF format to PDtestimony@cga.ct.gov. Testimony
should clearly state the testifier’s name and related bills. The Committee requests that
testimony be limited to matters related to items on the Agenda. The first hour will be reserved
for Legislators, Constitutional Officers, State Agency Heads and Chief Elected Municipal Officials.
Unofficial sign-up sheets have no standing with the Committee. All public hearing testimony,
written and spoken, is public information. As such, it will be made available on the CGA website
and indexed by internet search engines.
https://www.cga.ct.gov/asp/cgabillstatus/cgabillstatus.asp?selBillType=Bill&bill_num=SB-419
Read more by downloading the full CSFA Legislative Update: 03-14-18 in PDF format.
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, March 9, 2018
Everyone,
First, I would like to thank everyone who made the time to show up at the LOB this past Tuesday.
Furthermore, I offer special thanks the members of the Fire Service who appeared in Class A Uniform
that day. Our presence at the Fire EMS Caucus and the important public hearings that day was most
definitely noticed and appreciated. The Fire EMS Caucus meeting was well-attended by the Fire Service
and, if you missed it, you can watch the entire meeting courtesy of the Connecticut Network. We’ve
been told that the video links from the Fire EMS Caucus meetings are the most popular videos coming
out of the Capitol this year – 3000 video hits and climbing on the CT Network website. You can watch
the most recent Fire EMS Caucus meeting on the following link:
http://www.ctn.state.ct.us/ctnplayer.asp?odID=15074
Fire EMS Caucus co-chair Rep. Pat Boyd announced plans and the caucus voted to co-sponsor Fire
Service Day tentatively scheduled for April 11th, 2018. Boyd expects that the legislature will be in session
that day and that he hopes many more legislators and members of the Fire Service will attend. Rep.
Boyd also said that the funding of the operating budgets of the Regional Fire Schools was the top
priority this session. Also, Fire Chief John Alston from New Haven made public comment during the
caucus meeting and spoke of the importance of the Region Fire School system for urban municipalities
as well as for the smaller suburban communities with volunteer firefighters. Fire Chief Denis McCarthy
from Fairfield also spoke about the importance of restoring funds for Regional Fire Schools that have
been cut by Governor Malloy. April 11th, 2018 will also be the date for the next Fire EMS Caucus
meeting. I will post a schedule for that day as soon as possible.
Read more by downloading the full CSFA Legislative Update: 03-09-18 in PDF format.
Also, please read the CSFA 2018 FIRE SERVICE BILL TRACKING: 03-09-18.
CSFA Legislative Update from Leon Collins, March 3, 2018
Everyone,
This past week, I attended the last-minute public hearing for SB-193 – AN ACT CONCERNING REVISIONS
TO DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER PROTECTION STATUTES. The bill proposes changes to Dept of
Consumer Protection regulations that would allow companies to transport gasoline for mobile refueling.
The Fire Marshals oppose the bill, CSFA supports their position and we made that message clear at the
hearing. You can read more details on this new industry that is trying to come to Connecticut in the
following article:
http://www.autonews.com/article/20160502/OEM06/160509986/gasoline-delivery-startupswant-
to-fill-up-cars-anywhere-but-is-it
Here’s one of the businesses that delivers gasoline – take a look at how they are marketing themselves:
Read more by downloading the full CSFA Legislative Update: 03-03-18 in PDF format.
Also, please read the CSFA 2018 FIRE SERVICE BILL TRACKING: 03-02-18.
