Mayor's Report - November 2000

It was 23 years ago (1977) that the Sasamat Volunteer Fire Department (SVFD) was established, and on November 15th six of the original fire fighters were each awarded the Fire Services Exemplary Service Medal on behalf of the Governor General of Canada. On behalf of all residents in the two villages served by the SVFD, we extend our collective congratulations and thanks to the six medal recipients for the more than 20 years of dedicated community service: Dan Brain, Dave Buhr, Keith Evans, Bill Fraser, Alinda Patsch, and Larry Scott.

The Fire Services Exemplary Service Medal was created by Letters Patent signed by the Queen on August 29, 1985. The design of the medal incorporates crossed axes, a hydrant and a stylized Maltese Cross, an internationally recognized symbol of the fire prevention community. The Bar to the medal consists of a plain bar with a stylized maple leaf centred. The Medal is administered by the Chancellery of Canadian Orders and Decorations in Ottawa. The federal, provincial and territorial jurisdictions recommend eligible and deserving members of the Fire Services to the Chancellery. Awards are made on behalf of the Sovereign, by instruments signed by the Governor General and are announced in the Canada Gazette. Engraved medals and certificates of award are forwarded to the nominating authority for formal presentation on behalf of the Governor General.

Mayor Ralph Drew (left) and Mayor Hal Weinberg (right) with Exemplary Service Medal recipients
(left to right): Dan Brain, Dave Buhr, Bill Fraser, Keith Evans, Larry Scott

Following presentation of the medals and certificates, the Sasamat Fire Fighters Association was presented with two bronze plaques, one for each fire hall, in recognition of the extraordinary contribution of all the fire fighters to the recent fire hall additions. The wording on the plaques is self-explanatory:

“Presented to all volunteers, past and present, associated with the Sasamat Volunteer Fire Department in recognition of their contribution to the safety and well-being of our Villages.”

Some may recall that the total cost of the project was approximately $210,000 of which 50% was a provincial “matching grant”. The SVFD fire fighters contributed over 4,000 hours to the project in the form of volunteer labour doing direct construction work as the prerequisite “in-kind” contribution to match the $100,000 provincial grant.

Residents should also know that the Sasamat Fire Fighters Association recently sought and obtained a provincial lotteries grant of $50,000 for the acquisition of training materials and emergency extradition equipment. This again is a sizable amount of funding that would otherwise have to be sourced from local property taxes.

Again, our congratulations to the six medal recipients and their families; and our sincere thanks to all of the volunteer fire fighters who serve our communities providing emergency response services, a critically important function.

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