Parade Committee’s ‘Friendly

Agreement’ Was Anything But Friendly

To the Editor:

I typically do not write letters to the editor, especially regarding my fire department or its business. However, after reading a letter by Beth Caldwell in last week’s Bee [“A Clarification About The Parade.” Letter Hive 9/21/12], I feel the residents of Newtown were misled about the transactions between the Labor Day Parade Committee and Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company.

A few years ago the committee approached our fire department and requested us to limit our apparatus involvement to three trucks. Citing a recent request from the police department to shorten the parade, they wanted to limit the number of participating rigs. However if we paid the committee, they would allow us to bring more trucks depending on the dollar amount. How paying for our trucks keeps the parade shorter, I still do not understand.

In 2010, we were asked to help pay for our band by donating $250. We have exclusively marched with the CT Alumni Band in the parades we’ve participated in across the state for over 20 years. Weeks after the parade we learned from a member of the band that the parade committee had never passed that extra $250 on to the CT Alumni.

Last year, Sandy Hook Fire Department was not given a band at all. Luckily, halfway through the parade our members were able to track down members of another band that had already finished the parade route to loan us two drummers so we could march in step.

This year was the most frustrating of all. Approximately two weeks prior to the parade I received a call from a parade committee member offering our company three options for our involvement. If we didn’t pay anything we would be held to the three-truck restriction, and our band would march in another division. Surprising to us, since in the past (and recently) the parade committee had justified our payments around offsetting the cost of the band. Our next option was to pay $500, and they would give us the CT Alumni band and let us bring two additional trucks (totaling five). Finally we could pay $1,000, bring all of our trucks and have our band.

The “Friendly Agreement” that Mrs Caldwell spoke of has been anything but friendly. The members of our department have been outraged. In the past we have simply been compliant with their requests, but this offering crossed the line. Our department works very hard each year holding fundraisers that allow us to provide the highest level of service to our community possible. We do everything possible to spend our money in places that can directly benefit our residents. Residents who have donated to our company are seeing us spend money so they can see the vehicles that they have helped us pay for, and that is not right. I hope the parade committee can find other ways to raise funds in the future, rather than requesting money from volunteer firefighters.

Bill Halstead

Chief, Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company

23 Cherry Street, Sandy Hook                             September 26, 2012