Fire district station opens
ADAMS TWP — Township residents joined municipal and state officials Saturday afternoon to help celebrate the grand opening of the new Adams Area Fire District station, marking the end of a project fire company leaders said was a testament to the community's support of its volunteers.
After a ceremony that culminated in members of the company pushing the district's pumper truck into the new building, fire chief Bill Hayes said he hoped the project — which township officials said took nearly a decade to negotiate, design and construct — will be a hallmark of what's to come for the fire district.
As volunteer fire companies across the state continue to struggle with declining membership and financial pressures, Hayes said it's important for fire districts like Adams Township to look to the future.
“We're proud to pay homage to our rich history, but we are not satisfied with the status quo,” Hayes said. “We embrace change, and this building is proof.”
The station's grand opening attracted more than 50 residents and visitors, as well as elected officials from the township, county and state. Supervisor Linda Lees, who has served on the board for 28 years, said the celebration was overwhelming for those who had been with the project from the beginning.
“I can't even put the words to it,” she said. “It's just amazing to know that this building will help a lot of people.”
County Commissioner Kim Geyer called the fire hall “a symbol of decades of community support,” for the fire district, which is made up of two all-volunteer companies — Mars and Adams Township. She called on the communities served by the fire district to continue to rally around the volunteers who will sleep, train and respond to emergencies from the new station, and said the district should reach out to other companies around the county to offer training opportunities in its new facility.
“It is and will be the people of the community and region who will make this fire station what it will be in the future,” said Geyer.
State Sen. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, called the building “a symbol of commitment, cooperation and the future.”
“Folks, you should be very proud of yourselves,” he said.
For fire district officials, however, pride doesn't begin to qualify how it felt to show off the companies' new home.
District director Jim Ellis, who played a major role in designing the building — which features living quarters and a training area — said the new fire hall is a symbol of the area's commitment to community values and civic duty.
“The fire department is just another piece of the puzzle, coming together for civic values,” said Ellis. “Civic duty is alive and well in this community.”
Fire company President Jason Safreed, who joined the organization in 2002, thanked township officials for stepping in and helping fund the project — a commitment he said made a dramatic difference in the outcome.
“We ended up getting a place that suited us, not just a garage that holds our trucks,” Safreed said.
Fire officials said the group was putting together a time capsule, to be opened in May 2042, that included a copy of the Butler Eagle and a letter from Hayes to the chief serving at that time, and also planned on creating a museum display for the building's foyer area, to help commemorate the fire companies' histories.
But Hayes told members of the company that it's the history they will begin to write in their new station that he looks forward to the most.
“Without you, this is nothing more than a building,” he told members, who were arrayed Saturday in their dress uniforms. “With you, it is our home.”
