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| Charities: | charitable society • BCPFFA burn fund • youth ambassadors • muscular dystrophy • fire safety house |
A local charity
started in 1994 bringing together local paramedics and Powell River
Professional Fire Fighters. It is a non-profit society that
raises funds to support other local charities and to purchase necessary
emergency equipment that increases
care and the chance of survival for citizens in this
area. Since 2004, Powell River’s Professional Fire
Fighters have exclusively made up the Powell River
Professional Fire Fighters Charitable Society 'formerly Link for Life
Society'.
This year's 2011 Sun-A-Thon on Nov 15 was a huge success. Thanks to the support and generosity of the people of Powell River, we managed to raise over $14,000.00. This year the Powell River Professional Fire Fighter's Charitable Society teamed up with Sun FM and donated all proceeds raised at the Sun-A-Thon equally three ways between:
Powell River Brain
Injury
Society
The Bruce Denniston Society
for upgrades to the Oncology room.
Powell River Mobility Opportunities
Society
Through fund raising efforts including car washes, dinners, and hot dog stands, the Charitable Society has purchased the following equipment for the community: a TV and VCR for the maternity ward, modifications to the floor of a wheel chair van for a family in need and a lift assist chair; and most recently assisted with a donation to upgrade the oncology room at the hospital.
The Charitable Society has also purchased the following necessary emergency equipment: a defibrillator, a vital signs monitor, a thermal imaging camera and two pulse oximeters.
In
2008, the Charitable Society purchased a Mobie-CAD unit: a
mobile computer
with GPS mapping software.
Installed in Rescue 1 (the first response
unit), this device helps to further reduce turnout times by giving us
address and hydrant locations while en route to the incident. In
addition, building pre-plans, motor vehicle safety information, and
hazardous material information is added to the Mobie-CAD.
With all this information at hand, Powell River's fire fighters will be
able to make decisions more quickly, resulting in an increased level of
service. For more information, click here.
A
registered charity established in 1978 by the BC Professional Fire
Fighters Association, the Burn Fund provides life saving, life
supporting, and life enriching services to the
people in British
Columbia.
More than 3,500 professional fire fighters from forty-nine communities
around the province are building the Burn Fund's vision. We dedicate
our time and skills to support burn survivors and increase the public's
knowledge about fire and burn safety issues through the work the Burn
Fund does with its Burn Awareness, Research and Prevention
Programs.
If
you or your one of
your loved ones should ever get a serious burn, you would be sent to
one of the following burn units which we support. These include: BC
Professional Fire Fighters’ Burn, Plastic & Trauma
Unit at Vancouver General Hospital, the Burn Program at BC
Children’s Hospital, the Royal Jubilee Hospital Burn
Unit, and Burn Treatment Centres in Regional Hospitals throughout
British Columbia.
The Burn Fund finances essential burn survivor support programs,
including patient care items, staff training and statistical and
research programs as well as an annual burn camp for young burn
survivors. Powell River’s 13 Professional Fire Fighters
donate off-duty time and skills attending various local fund raisers in
support of this worthy cause. In 2011, we raised $1,158.
As an ongoing fund raiser, we carry Fire Dept T shirts and toques that can be obtained at Station 1. Thank you Powell River for your ongoing support and we’ll see you at our annual Black Berry Street Festival fund raiser.
Winner of this year's pirate prize basket was
Josh Werner
Powell Rivers
Professional Fire Fighters also frequently sponsor the local Youth
Ambassador Program. This valuable program provides an avenue for Powell
River's youth to build confidence and personal growth while increasing
their community knowledge. Topics in which they take part include:
speech training, etiquette, time management, poise, fitness and
nutrition.
Our past
representatives include:
Our current representative:
Hello! My name is Heather Gamborski. I
moved to
Powell River
in
1998, right before my grade 3 year. I attended Grief Point
Elementary School until the end of grade 5, then I proceeded to
Oceanview School to complete grades 6 through 9. In
September
2005 I started my first day of High School and currently I am enrolled
in Grade 12 at Brooks Secondary. I really enjoy taking my
business
courses and hope to obtain a Bachelors in Business Administration once
I graduate. I'm also interested in getting a diploma in
Kinesiology
because of my first aid training and life guarding courses, I've
become more interested in the way the body works. In my spare time,
when I can find any, I enjoy swimming, running, and working out.
I have
been involved with the swim club since 1999 as a swimmer and recently
started coaching in 2007.
I've also been a volunteer coach for Special Olympics Swimming since 2006. I love the water, and I use it as a way to lower the stress level during busy times, work and school exams. Representing the Powell River Professional Fire Fighters in the youth Ambassador program has been a great experience and I would encourge anyone to participate in this program.
Since its inception in 1954, Fire Fighters have been the backbone of Muscular Dystrophy Canada. As of 2007, Canadian Fire Fighters have raised over 61.3 million dollars in support of the tens of thousands of Canadians affected by neuromuscular disorders.
Powell
River’s Professional Fire Fighters have been supporters of
MDC since 1961, and every September we take part in a national boot
drive in uniform on our off duty time. Through the generous support of
the citizens of Powell River, we raised $6,700 in 2010, and since 1961
we have raised over $100,000 for this great cause. Thank you for your
continued support, we couldn't do it without you.
For more
information, visit 
Thanks to your generosity, some of the money collected has gone to pay for specialized equipment for a local Powell River resident. Click the following link to read the full article: Boot drive helps local woman walk...
Built
by the Powell River Professional Fire Fighters with much help from
local businesses and citizens, the house is a valuable teaching aid for
today's youth. The fire Safety house is a mobile, scaled down model of
a two-story, two bedroom house. The house has everything you would find
in an average residential house. In addition, it has a built-in control
room that lets fire fighters add theatrical smoke and activate strobe
lights (to simulate fire), in hallways outside the bedrooms.
Every year off duty Professional Fire Fighters donate their own time to staff the fire safety house to instruct grade three's throughout the district about fire safety. This is a valuable teaching aid as you can well appreciate. Along with a comprehensive classroom presentation made by the Fire Prevention Chief, the Fire Safety House reinforces all the fire safety tips youngsters need to be safe in the event of a fire in their home.