To My Hero,

Dad, thank you! From the bottom of my heart, thank you for all that you do. For our family, for our surrounding towns, and, even parts of Canada. It takes a special human to do what you do, and for that, I am grateful to have you in my life.

If I had a dollar for each call you responded to on the day you put up the Christmas decorations, my first year of college would be paid for. If I had fifty cents for all the meals you had to skip out on to help put out a fire, my semester abroad would be covered. But I don’t have that money, and neither do you. Why? Because you are a volunteer firefighter. It might not be the highest paying job, but it is one of the most rewarding.

You don’t do it for the glory and you definitely don’t do it for the money. You do it because you want to help and you know the sacrifices you make are potentially saving lives.

You don’t spend hours on end at the fire station waiting for a tone. You get up, go to work and you come home to be with your family. At any given time you could get pulled from work, dinner, sleep, or sporting events; and you have. As disappointed as we might be to see you leave, we know that at that moment, you are needed somewhere else.

From fire calls to car accidents, 2:00 in the afternoon or 2:00 in the morning, when that whistle blows, our world stops. We watch out the windows for the trucks to go by. We wait patiently and listen to the scanner for any updates we can hear.

The fire department has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. I have an entire team of uncles thanks to the brotherhood you have with your guys on the department.

I have a special level of respect for firefighters I’m not sure I would have if it weren’t for you. Obviously, I would be appreciative, but you have given me the chance to see first hand the impact you all have in the community.

People look up to you. I look up to you. It gives me much pride to know that my dad is part of something that is bigger than all of us. That he is part of a special team who risk their lives to save others. You are respected and I speak for so many people when I say thank you for everything you do.

I’ll love you forever,

Meagan

P.S. My dad kicks ASH!