The department gears up for its Paint the Town Pink series of fundraising events.
Stephen Finn
With a disease as widespread as cancer there are few people who aren’t touched by it in some way. Whether it is through a personal battle or that of a loved one, almost everyone has had an experience with it on some level. The Cinnaminson Fire Department is no different, and they are doing their part in supporting not just cancer patients but local paramedics as well.
For the last eight years the department has held the Paint the Town Pink fundraiser. A series of events all aimed at raising money for two local foundations: Virtua’s Tyanna Barre O’ Brien Breast Care Comfort Fund and the Rebecca “Becky” Scott Memorial Scholarship Fund. Both foundations have personal connections with the fire department.
They started their partnership with the Tyanna Foundation during their first year of fundraising with the help of their business administrator Jean Dietrick, who is herself a breast cancer survivor.
Rebecca “Becky” Scott was a paramedic with Virtua who often worked alongside members of the department at emergency scenes. She was close with a number of the fire fighters. “Many of us knew her growing up or from working incidents with her,” said Platoon Lieutenant Jim Clancy.
Scott passed away at the young age of 28 due to breast and liver cancer. After her passing her family started the Rebecca “Becky” Scott Memorial Scholarship Fund. This fund helps local paramedics obtain scholarships to assist with expensive training costs.
Each year the department’s fundraising efforts have earned more and more money for these causes. “The first year we did it we got stickers for our helmets and t-shirts to wear for the month, just to spread awareness” said Clancy. By the second year Dietrick got involved and through a partnership with Virtua they made $1,000 selling t-shirts.
Since then their efforts have expanded exponentially. “We were doing so well with Virtua we were able to expand and support both charities,” said Clancy. Last year through t-shirt sales and hosting a number of fundraisers including a paint night and a dine and donate event, the department was able to raise around $10,000.
This year will see some of the same events as previous years beginning with the second annual Family Fun Day on Saturday the 22nd. This is the official kickoff for their fundraising efforts and will feature a live DJ, food, games and fire trucks.
Another event that will be returning is the Sweetwater Dine and Donate. The department has had the most success with this event in previous years and hope this year will be no different. This will take place Thursday, Oct. 18 at Sweetwater Bar and Grill. 15% of the proceeds will be donated and there will be raffle baskets available.
There will also be some new additions to the calendar of events this year. “We’re excited to try a bowling event at Pinsetters this year,” said Clancy. There will be three hours of bowling and a full buffet available.
The fundraising goal for this year is $12,000, but Clancy says the real goal is awareness. “We run almost 1,500 emergencies a year but this could help more than that does. We’re in this profession to help people, so if we can do that and not just wait for the bells to go off this is our way of doing it,” said Clancy.
For a full calendar of Paint the Town Pink events you can attend visit the Cinnaminson Fire Department’s website or Facebook page. If you would like to assist the department with fundraising efforts you can email Clancy at [email protected].
