Ok folks.. it’s our first day back and I have a lot to cover tonight. It’s kinda going to be like a roller coaster because I have both good and sad to cover. First off, it’s taken a while for it to get out but we (Roanoke Firefighters), the State and Nation have lost a GREAT Union activist / leader, mentor and friend. D. Duane Dixon passed away last week (7-10-10) in Fort Myers Fla. I don’t even know where to begin. Duane has done so much for Firefighters across this great Nation. He worked for the Roanoke Fire Department for 25 years before retiring as Lieutenant in 1988. He served as President of our local (L1132) as well as Secretary treasurer. He served as Secretary Treasurer of the VPFF for 30 years. He went on to be elected President Emeritus for L1132 and Secretary Treasurer Emeritus for the VPFF. Today, he remains the only Emeritus Officer in the history of the VPFF! He has a collage scholarship fund in his name through the VPFF. My oldest daughter Randi-Jo had the honor of receiving that scholarship in 2003. I have made many Union trips along side Duane and can tell you first hand of his dedication to our efforts. He was well known for his efforts not just here but across the country. I can remember people waiting in line to come up and speak with Duane on many issues. I mentioned he worked here for 25 yrs many of which was at Station #3 (the old #3 of course). The house behind the station was gone when I was assigned there in 2000 but I remember the stories vividly 😉 I’ll say that I am proud to have served and worked with with Duane on Firefighter issues and will keep fresh the memories of our travels … he was a BLAST when the days work was done. He taught me that there’s more firefighting done behind the doors on Capital Hill than behind a nozzle. Often times when I think of him, I remember back to when he not only had hair; but a pony tail. Yea.. he had a pony tail and wore it in STYLE. I know I have a pic of us together when he had it but due to all the packing etc at my house, I cant get my hands on it right now. So, for the time being, I’ll steal a few pics from Rhett’s site over at Vafirenews.com . Check out the link because as always, Rhett has a really nice article about Duane. Here are the pics… first his Department photo and then one of him at IAFF Convention. A celebration of Duane’s life is being held in Fort Myers this Sunday but plans are also in the works for another “service” (if you will) here in Roanoke. I’ll get the date, details etc out as soon as they are confirmed. Moving on, it’s been another busy one here in “never never” land. We’ve done everything from bee killing to turnout gears inspections to calls. Yea..bee killing. At the fuel pumps we discovered a nest of yellow jackets inside where the nozzle hangs. YEA!! A BIG nest too… maybe ohhh a million! (LOL) Ok so maybe not a million but I’d rather fight 10 men than get stung by just 1 yellow jacket.. where’s big Phil Chitwood when ya need him? The good news is that the garage had “a guy” and they found him some bee spray.. Now I know that in the top pic you can only see 3 of em but TRUST ME.. there was at least 20-25 and we were fighting for our lives! I never knew Coon could run so fast (LOL). The TOG inspection and our runs today have been routine.. nothing special to report or no amazing pics. I did get some great video footage of the boys from #3 B-shift fretting “mini-me” over at station #5 yesterday though… Mentos in a diet coke… we’ve all seen it a thousand times yet it remains funny everytime you see it…check it out..
http://www.youtube.com/get_playerWe also had a special visitor this evening. Our old Buddy Officer Combs from our Station #9 days has finally found us… Combs came by to share a cold drink (and NO.. we did NOT play the Mentos joke on him…he carries a gun and pepper spray) a few laughs and some stories before having to get back to the grind.. Not much else to report on firehouse wise. I will say that I have been getting all the comments as to my farm help but have chosen NOT to publish them.. Hummmm… I wonder why? Dirty ol Firemen! Some of you guys are just SICK…. SICK I tell ya! Lol. The truth is.. it’s all a business ploy. Yea… use young, attractive women on the farm is good for business.. (bad for my health but good for business). You see, word travels fast in a small community so… everyone either A.) wants to hire me to cut / harvest their hay or B.) purchase their hay from me and pay extra for delivery so they can see the crew first hand. See??? It’s a win / win for me. The works rolling in and I have the best looking farm help in the valley. Here’s a shot of my newest help (Jess) helping get up cows yesterday morning… I know … I know… this farming stuff is rough but hey… if it was easy, everyone would do it 🙂 Oh yea, I’m also working on some new stuff for the blog. I have a few pics I want to share with you but don’t want to just throw em out there. I got a new program for jigsaw puzzles where hopefully, I can let out a “piece” of the picture / puzzle at a time. I haven’t figured out all the details yet like if the puzzle can / will be build on the site or not. I may have it so you request (or maybe somehow “win”) the pieces and put them together through your e-mail on your computer. A few decisions need to be made and some small details worked out but TRUST me.. you’ll want to see the pics. Ok, so I’m gonna wrap it up for tonight. We’re back Saturday and Monday. Until then, stay safe and in the house! Captain Wines