ELLERBE — The Derby Fire Department hosted its fifth annual spaghetti fundraiser, raising more than $900 to support department operations and expenses.
“Everybody looks forward to it every year. We got a lot of support this year. We’ve seen a lot of new faces in the community,” said Connie Green, secretary and event coordinator.
Green said rising costs tied to inflation have made fundraisers increasingly important for volunteer fire departments trying to maintain equipment and daily operations.
“The goal of this, as we all know, is inflation is a big thing in the country right now. Inflation has impacted in our personal lives, but I feel like personally, it hits home a lot more when it comes to fire stations because there’s so much more upkeep in fire stations that people don’t think about such as fire trucks,” said Green.
Green said she did not fully realize how much costs had increased until reviewing expenses tied to emergency calls and vehicle maintenance.
“I didn’t realize until we started looking at the bills and the gas receipts and things like that after they got off a big call and they had to fill up the trucks. It’s three times the cost to fill up a fire truck versus what it was before.”
As operational expenses continue to rise, Green said community events like the spaghetti fundraiser play a critical role in helping the department stay afloat.
“It has became very influential that we continue these fundraisers, number one for the constant camaraderie, but with inflation that’s happening,” Green said. “We’re thankful for the support from the county, but we also have to do our fundraisers to keep up and to keep the doors open because it’s getting very tough.”
Green noted that the department is staffed entirely by volunteers who dedicate their personal time to serving the community.
“We are 100% volunteer, nobody on this department is paid. Everybody on this department, more than likely, has their own full-time job and they do this out of the goodness of their heart,” said Green.
The department is also seeking additional volunteers and welcomes community members interested in serving.
“We are always looking for new volunteers—so anybody that wants to come join us, we do meet on the first, third and fifth Monday of every month if there is a fifth Monday, at 7 p.m. here at the Derby Fire Department.
“There’s hands-on training, there’s meetings and there’s a lot to learn, but the cost of running a fire department has became very heavy.”
Fire Chief David Poland echoed Green’s concerns about the increasing financial strain facing volunteer departments.
“This year has been really tough, last year was rough. We’re the only department in the county that does not have a fire tax district. We get $8,000 a year from the county mutual aid agreement contract. With that being said, the rest of this money comes from donations, fundraisers and whatever we can do to pick a few dollars here and there,” said Poland.
Poland said many departments are experiencing declining volunteer numbers, leading departments to rely more on one another through mutual aid agreements.
“We have looked at a lot of our automatic mutual aid agreements with surrounding departments, and every department has ramped up their game on that, so we’re calling on each other a lot more because everybody has the same problem as far as volunteerism—it’s down. We don’t have the manpower throughout the day, so we’re backfilling each other through that,” Poland said.
He added that increased mutual aid responses have also added to fuel and operational expenses.
“So on that side of it, we’re running a lot more calls now. Last year we went to Mountain Creek, now we’re automatically going. It’s an extra expense to what it’s costing us, so that’s more fuel,” said Poland.
Poland also recognized several businesses and individuals who contributed to the success of the fundraiser.
“I’d like to recognize Lee, Amy and Ava down at the Berry Patch for the donations of the produce, for the salads. I would like to recognize Wendy Huggins at Jellison Press in Aberdeen for printing up the banners, the flyers and everything else, and anybody else who donated or helped out make this a success. I do greatly appreciate it.”