Recently you may have noticed members of the Mineola Fire Department walking door to door in the Village asking residents and business owners to support their activities with a donation to their annual fund drive. This is the one fund-raising event that the volunteers of the Mineola Fire Department do each year. We ask all Village residents and businesses for their continued support as we strive to provide the very best service to our friends and neighbors in the Village of Mineola.

The Mineola Fire Department of today faces many challenges and is very different than its predecessor of 50, 25 or even 10 years ago. Its traditional role of fire suppression is evolving and has dramatically changed to include fire prevention, public education, technical rescue, hazardous materials and now terrorism planning and response. While our core mission still remains fire suppression, the term that best describes the fire service of today is an all hazards department.

The men and women who make up the Mineola Volunteer Fire Department donate thousands of hours monthly saving Village taxpayers millions of tax dollars annually. Training, cleaning and maintenance of equipment, apparatus and facilities occupy countless hours each week. Your volunteers also participate in fire prevention programs for your children, run an exceptional junior fire department program as well as participate and contribute to the Mineola Fair, the Memorial Day parade, the annual Village Halloween party and the Village's holiday tree-lighting ceremony. Each year we run Operation Santa which brings jolly old Saint Nick to visit children in their homes. In the summer months many of you request the fire department to stop by your block parties so that the children can admire the apparatus and maybe learn just a little more on fire safety while having fun. Those are just some of the "fun" things we do. On the serious side we stand ready to respond to your call for assistance 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Whether it is 3 p.m. or 3 a.m. and regardless of if it is a major structure fire or just a malfunctioning alarm we respond and yes, we even get cats out of trees! During severe weather when the rain is pouring down, the wind is howling or the snow is piling up we leave our homes and families and are standing by in quarters ready to respond to your emergencies. During the August blackout we were there and during the tragic events of September 11, 2001 we were there.

Your tax deductible donation to the Mineola Fire Department Fund Drive helps make all these things possible. It supports your volunteer fire department and most importantly it helps support your friends and neighbors who volunteer their time as members of the Mineola Fire Department. They stand ready to put their lives on the line for you, please support them and donate to the Mineola Fire Department Fund Drive.