“It takes more than firefi ghters to run Milano VFD,” according to Milano VFD Fire Chief Kain Dodd.
Going back further than the chief can remember there has always been a Milano VFD Ladies Auxiliary supporting the fire department. Most of the department’s funding that is raised at the annual chili supper is spent on necessary maintenance and operations costs and leaves little money left over for equipment. In order to raise funds for equipment, the Ladies Auxiliary created a garage sale fundraiser.
What started out as a small sale inside of the Milano Community Center once a year has now grown to an over 12,000-square foot sale at the new Milano VFD Fire Station.
Last year the fire department received notice that it would not be able to purchase a new rescue truck with the grant funding they had been waiting for since 2019. Having exhausted all efforts for other funding sources they turned to their Ladies Auxiliary.
In 2023 Milano VFD Ladies Auxiliary raised over $50,000 from their two garage sales. Due to the hard work and dedication of these ladies the funding raised at last year’s sales was enough to purchase a used rescue truck via an online auction site. The new Rescue 327 is a 2017 Dodge 5500 4x4 crew cab with a stainless-steel rescue box and a 300-gallon skid unit for small car fires during extrication.
Milano VFD responded to a motor vehicle accident with entrapment on July 4, 2017. While en route to the scene in rescue 327, Milano VFD firemen were notifi ed that the vehicle was on fire and the driver was still inside. Old Rescue 327 had no firefighting capabilities other than portable extinguishers. “Since that night it has been my goal to have a rescue truck with fire extinguishing capabilities. I’m proud to say with the hard work of our Ladies Auxiliary and the support of the department we finally have accomplished this task,” Dodd said.
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