Mayacamas Volunteer Fire Department

MAYACAMAS
VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT
MARCH 2015
A Word from the President
By Allison Ash, MVFD Board President
It is a pleasure to communicate to you as
the new president of the MVFD Board.
Though I’m happy with my new role, it’s
troubling that I take the reigns at a time
when Fire Services in Sonoma County are
in turmoil. As many of you know, there is a
County initiative to evaluate fire service
delivery. I want to ensure that cost
efficiencies do not trump service delivery.
In our rugged terrain, getting to a fire
quickly is the single best way to prevent a
runaway wildland fire that can destroy
homes and endanger people.
There is no better example of this than a
narrowly avoided disaster this past summer:
a truck caught fire on Trinity Road near the
county line. The fire had just jumped into
the an oak tree at the time the MVFD
arrived. Our firefighters immediately called
for backup just in case.
When the
responding trucks from GEFD & CalFire.
turned onto Trinity, a jack-knifed truck
blocked their access. Had there not been
MVFD fire resources “on the mountain” at
the very beginning of this fire, 2014 would
have been known for an unfortunate
wildland disaster.
Your Board and Firefighters are actively
working with the County Fire Services
Ad-Hoc Committee to make our concerns
known. Chief Horne is a member of the Ad
Hoc committee of 8 Fire Chiefs working to
provide recommendations to the County.
In the coming months we may ask you to
provide input to county officials about the
value of the MVFD to our community and
safety. If you want to learn more, please
visit www.mayacamasVFD.org.
On a lighter note… in addition to having a
terrific website where you can learn when
fire season starts, how to get a burn permit,
and read about events & resources, you can
now Follow us on Twitter!
You may have noticed we’ve been busy in
2015. We put new fire danger advisory
signs at the three entry points of our
coverage area. These signs will also let you
know when fire season starts (ie: no more
brush burning allowed). There is a new well
at Station 1, which you can read more
about in the Fundraising section of this
newsletter. Lastly, we had the biggest, most
successful Starlight Auction ever. We
raised more money than ever and (it
seemed to me) everyone had more fun than
ever!
Finally, you may read in the news about
other fire departments in the county facing
financial trouble. We remain financially
sound due to your generous donations, help
from the county, and because we remain a
100% volunteer organization. I am grateful
to each and every one of you who donate
your time and/or money to the MVFD.
Thank you!
CONTACT INFORMATION
BOARD MEMBERS
Allison Ash – President
Pat Matthews – Vice President
Marc Schwager – Treasurer
Ellen Scarr – Secretary
Michael Jablonowski – Director
NONPROFIT ORG
SkylaU.S.
Olds
P – Director
PAID
Pete Stewart
– Director
GLEN ELLEN,
CA
PERMIT NO. 17
To reach the MVFD for any emergency
dial 9-1-1
To contact the MVFD for other reasons,
visit www.mayacamasVFD.org or email
to [email protected]
Follow us on Twitter @mayacamasVFD
MVFD Board meetings are open to the
public and occur on the second Monday
of each month at 7pm at Station 1,
located at the corner of Cavedale and
Trinity.
INSIDE:
County Ad-Hoc committee
Fire safety tips
Starlight Auction Date
Levi Leipheimer
…and more!
MAYACAMAS VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT | MARCH 2015
A Word from our Fire Chief
By WILL HORNE, MVFD CHIEF
I would like to talk about home safety as it
relates to fire safety.
Clearance around homes & burning
cleared brush:
Kitchens:
I talk about this every newsletter, but it is
one of the most important things you can
do to make your property defensible in case
of wildland fire. Make sure you meet the
CDF requirement of 100 ft. of brush
cleared around your home. When burning
brush, be certain you have 30 ft. of ground
clearance and 50 ft. vertical clearance
around the burn pile. And remember, you
cannot burn during fire season nor on
BAAQMD spare-the-air days, and you
must have a burn notification on file with
BAAQMD.
Please
visit
www.mayacamasVFD.org for all the details.
The kitchen is where most fires start and
the most common causes are the electric
can opener, coffee makers, and toasters.
When not using them, they should be
unplugged. Also, be careful of combustibles
such as pot holders, dish towels, paper
towels, plastic bags and recipe books that
are near hot surfaces like stovetops and
toasters, especially before leaving your
house. Always look in the oven before you
turn it on; you may be surprised at what you
might have left inside!
Wood Stoves and Fireplaces:
Fireplace chimneys used for heating your
home should be checked regularly for
creosote buildup. If there is a buildup, it is
essential that you have it cleaned to remove
all buildup.
Chimney fires are very
common in our rural area and can burn a
home down.
.
Social News and Events
Save these important dates for the MVFD!
-
MVFD Picnic and Annual Meeting – Saturday June 13th
Attention residents of Margie, Manzanita, Maple Glen, Wall, Cavedale, and Trinity Roads;
you can meet your neighbors, honor our firefighters, and learn from the Chief about the latest
fire news. We are looking for one of you to volunteer to host the Picnic this year. The MVFD
will do all the work, you just provide your back yard. Contact us at [email protected]
if you’re interested!
Starlight Dinner & Auction – Saturday August 8th
Our big date this year is Saturday August 8th. This fabulous event is the cornerstone of the fundraising
needed to keep your Fire Department in operation. Those who have attended will agree on the outstanding
hospitality of the MVFD! This awesome event has become so popular that attendance has increased greatly,
including folks from outside the area. Please recruit your friends, buy a table, and have fun!
Join the Starlight Auction Committee!
Sign-up now to help us plan the theme, work on decorations, and procure live and silent auction items.
Contact us at [email protected] for more info.
MAYACAMAS VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT | MARCH 2015
Fundraising News
By PAT MATTHEWS, BOARD VICE PRESIDENT
2014 was a very successful year for the Mayacamas
Volunteer Fire Department from the standpoint of
fundraising. Our StarLight Dinner and Auction
chaired by David Cole and held in August was one of
the most successful auctions we have held in years,
raising over $45,000. Thank you, David! Our second
fund raising tool is the Annual Fund Drive, which this
year raised over $15,000. Thank you, community!
That is the good news, now the not so good news:
The well at Station One ran dry this past summer and
we had to spend $37,000 for a replacement well and
equipment. But, due to the success of our fundraising,
we were able to afford this unexpected expense and
continue to operate our all-volunteer fire department
without reducing our operating budget. A really big
“Thank You!” to all who donated this past year.
As we look forward to 2015, we will be holding our
Starlight Dinner and Auction on August 8th Of
course your attendance is essential to the success of
this important event, but you can help in more ways
than that. Remember we’re a volunteer organization
and we can always use more hands. Auction planning
starts months ahead of the actual date and there are
many opportunities to help out: You can help with the
planning and organizing of the auction; decorations
and event theme; gathering donations from local
merchants; or you can help the day of the auction.
Your time is as important as your contributions to the
success of the MVFD.
Volunteering is also a great way to meet and get to
know other good people who share your concern
about the welfare of our fire department. To find out
how you can help, you can contact me, Pat Matthews,
at [email protected] or 996 -1805. Or you can
contact us at [email protected].
RESOURCES
Twitter!
MVFD now has a twitter feed! Follow us @MayacamasVFD. In
addition to regular information about fire season, events & weather,
Twitter will allow us to provide a steady stream of communications in
case we have a large fire in the area.
Mutual Aid
If an emergency occurs on the mountain, MVFD is the first responder.
Our pre-positioned people and equipment allow us to reach the scene of
an emergency quickly. But, it is important to know that we are not alone
up here. If there is a large fire or if we are tied up responding to an
emergency and another call comes in, help is still on the way. This
happens through a countywide Mutual Aid Service.
Mutual aid is a set of agreements among county fire services to back each
other up. When an emergency call comes into REDCOM (our county
wide dispatch) from our area, MVFD gets the first call. Depending on
the call, REDCOM may also dispatch Cal Fire, Glen Ellen, Kenwood,
Sonoma Valley, or Schell Vista fire teams. In the case of the Gehricke
and Norrbom Road area, Shell Vista is the first responder based on the
Mutual Aid agreement. We also have an agreement with Dry Creek,
which crosses Napa/Sonoma county boundaries.
The bottom line is that this system identifies the closest resources to
respond to an emergency and assures that there is plenty of extra help
when needed.
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MVFD Call Reports
The MVFD is the “first responder” to more than just
fire calls. We are the first responder for medical aid,
vehicle and bicycle accidents, and other calamities in
our service area. The calls responded to by the MVFD
over the past year fall into the following categories:
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MAYACAMAS VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT | MARCH 2015
Saving Lives, Saving Property
Mayacamas Volunteer Fire Department, Inc.
P.O. Box 225
Glen Ellen, CA 95442-0225
Address Service Requested
Levi Leipheimer and Cavedale Road
Perhaps many of you have seen a cyclist
streaming up Cavedale, almost faster than
you can drive…and catching a glimpse of
the face beneath that bike helmet, you
realized it was Levi Leipheimer! He is an
Olympic medalist, three-time champion of
the Tour of California, and importantly to
us, a Sonoma County philanthropist.
In 2009, Levi founded the King Ridge
Granfondo, an annual Sonoma County
cycling event that draws thousands of
participants from all over the world. His
charity organization, Levi’s Granfondo,
donates monies from the King Ridge
Granfondo registration fees and other
fundraising events to the NorCal High
School Cycling League, other cycling
initiatives, local schools, Forget Me Not
Farm (a farm providing activities for
abused children), and state parks. Now
retired, Levi donates 100% of his time to
his charity and its work: to date, Levi’s
Granfondo has given nearly $1.2 million
dollars to programs and organizations
within the county.
What does this have to do with Cavedale
Road? Levi’s Granfondo also provides
support to rural communities, whose roads
are particularly favored by cyclists. Levi’s
Granfondo has provided more than
$46,600 for paving improvements to rural
roads, including Cavedale Road. In
addition, the charity has donated more
than $73,000 to volunteer fire
departments, benefitting our Mayacamas
Volunteer Fire Department.
So the next time you see a cyclist on
Cavedale, slow down, allow him or her to
move over safely so you can pass, and if you
realize it’s Levi riding up the road, say
thanks!