CARIBOU, Maine — Members of the Caribou Fire Department brought their gear to Burger Boy’s Sept. 11 car hop to raise money for the department and show local children how fires are fought.
Burger Boy owner Spenser Ouellette said firefighters raised $400, which will benefit the department’s scholarship fund and a project to restore an antique fire truck.
Captain Brian Lajoie and several full-time and volunteer members brought four vehicles, Engine One, Ladder Three, Tanker Four, and an ambulance. The event, the department’s first fundraiser at the burger shop, lasted from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
“Things are picking up right now,” Lajoie said at about 5:30 on Monday. “We’re hoping for a good evening.”
Firefighters provided free hats for youngsters, and showed adults “what their tax money is going toward and how it can be used to fight fires,” Lajoie said.
“We’re doing this in conjunction with 9/11,” the fire captain said. “We had a ceremony this morning at the fire department in remembrance of all who lost their lives [that day], and we continue that observance here tonight.”
Lajoie said he would “definitely do this again,” adding that members of the Caribou Fire and Ambulance Department have been getting out in the community more.
“We’ve had a presence at Thursdays on Sweden,” Lajoie said, “and would spray water for kids on hot nights.”
The captain said he’s received a great deal of positive feedback from the fire department’s presence at Thursday’s on Sweden, and that on nights when firefighters were too busy to attend “kids were all asking where we were.”
“We’re trying to get education out there,” Lajoie said, “and getting the kids used to seeing fire trucks, what we wear for gear, and not being afraid of firemen. A lot of this is about education for fire prevention.”
