Giving a little extra
Richard Byrd/Columbia Basin Herald Santa, portrayed by Moses Lake firefighter Jay Morice, shows Shane Anderton the gifts he brought to put under the Christmas tree.
Richard Byrd/Columbia Basin Herald Moses Lake firefighters deliver a bed to a local family in need Saturday morning.
Richard Byrd/Columbia Basin Herald Moses Lake firefighters, and Santa, make their way up some stairs to deliver presents to a local family in need.
MOSES LAKE — Typically when a person sees a couple of fire trucks and an ambulance outside of their home, the end result is not too enjoyable. On a bitterly cold Saturday morning, the opposite was true, as Moses Lake firefighters stormed the homes of the Anderton and Vanhulle families with gifts in tow, rather than fire hoses and axes.
Christmas Eve’s outreach was sponsored by the Moses Lake Firefighters Local 1258 and saw two single mothers get help to put presents under the tree. Between the two families, the Local 1258 spent about $500, from the Moses Lake Firefighters Benevolent Fund, to buys gifts and other essentials, explained firefighter Jason Koziol.
“We got the information from my wife, actually, who works for the (Moses Lake) school district. She found out that there was some families that needed some help this holiday season and she talked to me and I brought it back to the guys and we decided to help them out,” Koziol said. “We got some information on the families through the school district and they talked to the families and saw what they needed.”
From toys, obviously, to toiletries and even a bed, the Andertons and Vanhulles were met with a wide array of gifts. Santa, portrayed by firefighter Jay Morice, accompanied the firefighters on each of the two missions.
“It’s always good to give back to the community. We also give back every day, for what we do, but it’s always good to give back just a little bit more,” Koziol remarked.
Saturday’s outreach was just one of an array of different community endeavors the Local 1258 is involved in. Earlier this month the firefighters delivered 120 warm winter coats to first-graders at Midway, Peninsula, Knolls Vista, North, Larson and Longview elementary schools. The money to purchase the coats for the outreach, which was apart of Operation Warm, was donated to the Local 1258 from the Moses Lake Education Association, Moses Lake Industries and the Moses Lake Firefighters Benevolent Fund.
Some people say that firefighters already do enough. Why give back when you already do so much for the community at large? The answer to that question is simple, Koziol says; the firefighters take the extra step because they aren’t doing it for themselves. Rather they are doing it so others have their lives impacted, if only for a little while.
“It’s always good to just give back a little bit more to people in need and these families needed it,” Koziol said. “It’s two-fold. To me it spreads cheer. And I think it makes everybody here (the fire department) feel a little bit better in the Christmas spirit of giving. Like I said, we give every day for the job that we do, but just to give a little extra at this time of the year, it always helps.”