June 12, 2006

Strawberry Festival a wet one

       The White River Township Fire Department's 14th annual Strawberry Festival was held on June 9th and 10th at the Pleasant Grove Elementary School.  The event is designed to raise community awareness of the the fire department as well as provide a few hours of fun and learning for the entire family.  The fire department sells various food items and of course its signature Strawberry Shortcakes to raise money to pay for the event itself along with the fireworks show that ends the weekend.  "We want the community to know their fire department" said James Engmark, Battalion Chief and Public Information Officer for the department.  "Our goal is to provide a family-friendly event while at the same time getting our public safety message out" he said. 

         Not unlike previous festivals, this year's event had several demonstrations and educational programs that were offered over the two days.  One of the crowd favorites is the Automobile Extrication Demonstration where the fire department uses the "Jaws of Life" and other equipment to simulate removing an entrapped victim from an automobile accident.  The event is completed when the victim is loaded into an awaiting medical helicopter and "transported" to Methodist Hospital.  Other attractions included the department's new Fire and Weather Safety House, a stage show from MC Axe and the Fire Crew, antique cars, inflatable moon walks, various vendors and displays, and fireworks.

         Also not unlike previous festivals, it got wet, in fact, real wet.  Although the weather on Friday was ideal, Saturday was a different story with heavy rain nearly all day and temperatures that struggled to get into the lower 60's.  The rain did thankfully manage to stop just in time to shoot off the fireworks.  However, even the fireworks show was not without complications.  The computer that runs the show malfunctioned and performed the fireworks in reverse order with the grand-finale starting the show.  However, with all things considered, the weekend was still a success with the largest crowd yet to ever attend the event on a Friday.  The fire department would like to sincerely thank all of this year's vendors, agencies, contributors, volunteers, and most of all, the patrons, who all helped make the event an overwhelming success.

         
 2006 Contributors

	Allied Appliances	Hix Wrecker Service	MC Axe & the Fire Crew
	LifeLine helicopter and crew	"Kasey" the Fire Dog	Steak and Shake (SR 135)
	Bouncers R Us	Mr. & Mrs. Richard Matthews	Pleasant Grove Elem. School
	Center Grove School Corp.	PHI helicopter and crew	RSC Rentals
	Fox 59 Morning News	Indiana Blood Center	Grand Rental Station (Greenwood)
	Aqua Systems Water

 
           

           

           

           

           
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