GALION–The Jefferson Township Fire Department has been awarded a grant from the Gary Sinise Foundation to buy new hoses for two of their firetrucks.
The department is receiving $15,700 from the foundation, the amount requested in the grant application, according to Lt. Matthew Grove. “It’s one of those things I’m pretty excited about.
It’s a pretty good win for us to get something like that,” he said.
The volunteer fire department, with the grant money, will now be able to purchase large diameter fire hose, or LDH, to outfit their first-out and second-out fire engines, replacing hose that is more than 30 years old, Grove said.
“I am excited,” Grove said. “When you save the taxpayers almost $16,000 and are able to put new equipment on your apparatus, that’s a pretty big thing. I’m pretty pumped up about it.”
The Gary Sinise Foundation – launched in 2011 by actor and humanitarian Gary Sinise – serves and honors American veterans, first responders, and their families. Among other services, it provides 24-hour crisis hotlines for those in need.
In 2017 the foundation built a “smart home” in Crestline for retired U.S. Army Capt. Nick Vogt, who lost both legs during an explosion in Afghanistan. That project is part of its Restoring Independence, Supporting Empowerment, or R.I.S.E. program.
The Liberty Township Fire Department in nearby Sulphur Springs also received a grant from the foundation to buy turnout gear for its volunteer force, Grove said. That’s how he found out about the Nashville-based organization and its grant process.
The Jefferson Township F.D. covers about 19 square miles. Although it’s a volunteer department, it is now staffed Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., Grove said.