Fund Drive Letter and Donation Information

Dear Neighbor and Friends,

Who is the Chestertown Fire Department?  Have you ever asked yourself this question?  There are probably many perceptions of who we are.  Many may think that we are career firefighters and are paid to be ready to respond.  Luckily, as fire prevention and code enforcement has worked to reduce the number of emergencies that we experience in our homes, very few residents are forced to call 911.  There is a large portion of our community who may see us at the Memorial Day Parade or the Town Celebration but luckily never see us during an emergency.

Our Department is completely volunteer.  We have existed for 85 years serving the Chestertown Fire District.  Our members work in the community, own businesses, and work in our school.  We have members who work for State Corrections and retired police officers.  You may have seen some of these people in our community with the pager on their side ready at any time to respond to an emergency.  One of the things that all of these members have in common is the belief in our community and giving back to it.  Many members are not only volunteer firefighters but also members of other service organization.  You may know some of them through your affiliation with these organizations.

Our members respond to a variety of responses each year.  We respond 24 hours a day 7 days a week to any emergency that our community suffers.  This includes structural fires, auto accidents, grass and brush fires, flooding, carbon monoxide responses, and rescue situations in our wilderness and on our lakes, hiking and snowmobile trails. When bad storms hit our area, our members respond to down power lines and traffic blocks.  We also respond to cardiac arrest calls and assist our local Emergency Squad when they need it.  These responses account for over 100 calls each year.  

Our members also provide community services such as fire prevention programs each year at the North Warren Central School and our local day care providers.  We have a member who instructs CPR courses for our members and members of other service organizations.  We developed a program for the High School students that we deliver each year prior to the prom to remind them of the dangers of drinking and driving.

Through our fund raising and your generous donations we have been able to purchase Automated External Defibrillators for our station and our apparatus to more quickly serve you in an emergency.  Recently we were able to purchase three more of these devices that will be carried by our three Chiefs, in their personal vehicles, to reach you as quickly as possible should you need us.  These will be going in service in the next few weeks. 

As a Fire Department our organization does not receive any funding from either the Chestertown Fire District or the Town of Chester, which make your past generous donations important to us.  If you are able to send a donation, know that we are a Not for Profit organization and your donation is tax deductible.  Your check will serve as your receipt.

As in the past, we thank you for your donation and look forward to assisting you in any manner.  Should you have the time and the desire to join our ranks we would be privileged to have you apply and become a member.

Firematically, 

The Members of the Chestertown Fire Department

If you would like to make a donation to our Fire Company, please mail it to:

Chestertown Volunteer Fire Company
Attn: Jack D. Bartlett, Secretary
PO Box 382
Chestertown, N.Y. 12817