From humble beginnings…

There’s an adage that “the more things change...the more they stay the same.”

The Greenhithe Volunteer Fire Brigade has certainly changed dramatically since 1958 when the only available water supply in the village were strategically placed 40-gallon drums and Mr Crowther the local store keeper would sound a siren on the roof of his store.

The training and equipment available to current brigade members is a far cry from the original portable firefighting pump and old Reo truck.

What hasn’t changed is the sprit of the brigade members and their desire to be part of their community and give their time freely.  In today’s fast changing world, it’s a comfort and a privilege to be part of such a 50 year old community tradition.

Over ANZAC weekend 2008 (25^th – 27^th April) we’ll be celebrating our 50^th anniversary.  Look out for old friends as we’ve invited every past member and their families back to Greenhithe to join us for the celebrations.

On Friday 25^th the brigade will be marching at the Browns Bay Anzac Day Dawn Parade which begins at 08:00hrs.

We have an open day on station from 10:00–13:00hrs on Saturday 26^th.  There will be live fire demonstrations, car cut-outs, face painting and lots more – please see our advertisement in this issue.

On Sunday 27^th we will be holding the annual Greenhithe Dairy vs Fire Brigade cricket match at Collins Park @ 14:00hrs.  We’re hoping to achieve our first ever win this year.  The big question of course is which team will firefighter Patel play for?  No pressure Pinakin!

Thank you to the Playcentre mum’s, our face-painters and everyone else who is helping us out over the weekend…very much appreciated.

If you want more details on the celebrations and our brigade history they are now available on-line http://www.greenhithefire.org.nz.  Well done to firefighters Craig Worthington and Scott Rees for creating the new site…it looks great.  There’s a set of photos from our recent training in Whangarei, working inside a concrete bunker with temperatures in excess of 250^oc. 

I wonder if our station’s siren, which was obtained from the Hobsonville Air Base 50 years ago, will be there for the 100^th anniversary celebrations.  Here’s hoping!

Keep safe

Firefighter Steve Hey