The Salem Fire Department has been awarded $2,500 from the Modern Woodmen of America.
Each year, the Modern Woodman of America find a nonprofit to support and they reached out to the Salem Fire Department because several members of the Modern Woodman of America live in the department’s district.
The Modern Woodmen of America is a member-owned fraternal financial services organization with over 700,000 members, according to the organization’s website.
They told the department they would match up to $2,500 of what volunteers raised at the annual Salem Fire Pancake Breakfast. The department exceeded the $2,5000 threshold so they received the full amount for the check.
The Salem Fire Department is a volunteer organization that has served the Salem community for over 50 years. Just this past July, they staffed their first day-time staff so now they even could be considered a “combination department.”
Each year the department hosts the Salem Fire Pancake Day at Salem Elementary. This is the department’s only fundraiser and it allows the public to interact with the firefighters and support the community.
With the donation, the department was able to purchase personal thermal imagers that can be used to find sources of heat and for search and rescue.
“They can even be used for car accidents if someone is thrown from a vehicle and it’s dark outside,” said Laura Gerrald, office manager the Salem Fire Department.
