Posted
On: Jun 29, 2009 (19:17:18) A couple of weeks ago, Local 5 Members Carrick Patterson, Drew Cahill and Jake Schneider along with 3 other friends participated in the 1st annual Fountain Fire Dept Volleyball tourney to benefit MDA. After a long day of sand volleyball and fun, we would like to congratulate the team as they took 1st place in the entire tournament! Congrats to our members for a job well done!!
Posted
On: Jun 23, 2009 (13:15:52) The Colorado Springs Professional Firefighters, Local 5, and Colorado Springs Fire Station 8 will be hosting a Bicycle and Safety fair at the Promenade Shops at Briargate on Saturday June 27th from 10am-2pm.This event will help ensure that children’s bikes are safe to ride as well as to make sure that kids are wearing their helmets.The 1st 100 children to arrive that DO NOT already have a helmet, will receive a helmet and have it properly fitted.Children will also be able to participate in a bicycle rodeo and have their bikes looked at by a bicycle technician.Other safety information and displays will be on hand to promote general safety such as the CSFD Smoke trailer, fire engines, AMR, CSPD, Flight for Life, seatbelt safety, El Paso County Search and Rescue and much more.This is non-profit event to promote safety within Colorado Springs.
Posted
On: Jun 23, 2009 (13:09:16) The Colorado Springs Professional Firefighters, Local 5, will be “stranded” on top of the Promenade Shops of Briargate to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association as part of the Fill the Boot Campaign.Five Firefighters will be camping out all weekend on the roof of the Promenade Shops at Briargate with the hopes of being rescued by a 75 ft aerial ladder which will be extended 1ft for every $100 collected throughout the weekend.Citizens can come down and donate cash or checks by putting them in boots being lowered by the fire fighters from the roof.They can also enjoy fire truck tours, purchase Local 5 gear or participate in the Bicycle and Safety Fair on Saturday from 10-2pm. All proceeds will be donated to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Updated
On: Jun 21, 2009 (08:53:00)
Congress has voted to allow the use of federal funding to rehire laid off fire fighters and prevent fire department staffing reductions. The new rules for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grants make funding available to help keep IAFF members safe and on the job and bring back those who have been laid off as a result of the current financial crisis. The bill is now on its way to the White House. This particular topic is one that members of the Local 5 Executive Board (Smaldino, Mather, Hirni and Kroto) spent time lobbying for while at the Legislative conference earlier this year!
"The IAFF made it an urgent priority to pass this proposal to waive current requirements and allow SAFER grants to be used to save our members' jobs and restore cuts made to staffing," says IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger. "With the passage of this waiver, fire departments can use this money to prevent layoffs and ensure adequate staffing."
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano agreed to postpone the 2009 application process for SAFER grants until the new waiver authority is in place. This assures that the $210 million that Congress appropriated for SAFER can be used to address the current wave of staffing cuts. The IAFF is working with DHS to establish the new rules and will post information on the application period as soon as it is available.
The IAFF strongly urges affiliates to work with their fire departments to apply for SAFER money. "As we all know, adequate staffing is critical to effective response and fire fighter and public safety," says Schaitberger.
Under the original law, — passed in 2004 — communities could only receive a SAFER grant if they planned to increase fire department staffing levels. Fire fighters hired with SAFER grants had to be retained for at least five years, and the fire department couldn’t reduce staffing levels during this period. These restrictions have combined to prohibit fire departments from using SAFER grants to prevent layoffs, and have discouraged fire departments from applying for SAFER grants during this current economic recession.
Updated
On: Jun 19, 2009 (17:30:00) On June 20th - Fathers day weekend, the Denver Outlaws are doing their part to support MDA by donating a portion of each ticket sold! The game is at 7pm vs the Toronto Nationals. Tickets are $10 for general admission or $19 for premium seating. If you would like to attend please contact Matt Horsey at 720-258-3607. For more info please see the attached flyer! Download:
HeroNight(MDA)_Outlaws.pdf
Posted
On: Jun 04, 2009 (16:06:35) On June 4, 2009, Gov. Ritter went against his word to support collective bargaining in Colorado and vetoed SB180 which would have allowed firefighters to enter into an agreement with their local Jurisdiction. To read the press release from our Firefighters, please click on the link listed below. Tomorrow ALL FIREFIGHTERS are encouraged to meet at the AFL-CIO office at 1130 at 140 Sheridan in Denver CO for a press conference. If you have questions please contact any E-board Member!!! Download:
CB veto press release.doc
On May 31st, Local 5 President Mike Smaldino was quoted in the Gazette about the upcoming decision regarding SB180 - Collective Bargaining. To view this article please click on the following link: http://www.gazette.com/articles/bill-55369-colorado-fire.html If you have any questions - please do not hesitate in calling any E-Board Member.
Updated
On: May 31, 2009 (10:01:00) One of our own southern Colorado MDA kids, Chris Davison was going to get a new computer when L5 members stepped in and decided to not only get him a computer, but build him a computer that can do it all! Chris has been a Colorado Springs MDA spokesperson for many years and he suffers from Duchenne's Muscular Dystrophy. Due to this, he is wheelchair bound, but this doesn't stop him from reaching his goals and he has a love for gaming and working with computers. Yesterday - May30th, Jerry Montella finished building the computer and Chris was able to use it for the very first time!! If you would like to see photos and comments - please visit the following link: http://www.evga.com/forums/tm.asp?m=100702035 If you have any questions please contact Jerry Montella at 719-492-5594
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On: May 23, 2009 (18:11:00) Help us by supporting one of our own! Come get a run in, drink, and raise money for one of our firefighters. Firefighter Bob Haines is taking four Wounded Warriors to summit Mt. Denali in June. With your help we can make this adventure a little easier. Go to www.theveteranscoalition.org/operation_denali/index.htm for more information regarding this amazing adventure. Colorado Springs Professional Firefighters Local 5 will be hosting the Jack Quinns run on June 2nd at 5pm with all donations being given to offset the cost of this adventure allowing injured veterans to summit Denali. If you have any questions please contact Scott Reiman at 719-492-5590.
Updated
On: May 20, 2009 (10:36:00)
On Friday July 17th, Local 5 will host the 7th annual Firefighter Chili Cook-off! This year we will again be having our chili competition for the best red or green chili, peoples choice, best booth and more! PPIHC will also be hosting the motorcross motorcycle jumpers, 2 beer gardens, PPIHC cars and driver autographs, and much much more as the event has added 2 ENTIRE BLOCKS!!! Please click on the links below for Registration information or if you have questions please dont hesitate to contact Scott Reiman at 719-492-5590 or our office at 719-596-4618
Download:
Chili RSVP State-wide.pdf,
invitation letter 2.pdf
IAFF
News Headlines:
(Updated Daily From
IAFF.org)
HeroNight(MDA)_Outlaws.pdf
CB veto press release.doc
