Crete Rotary Club
Crete, NE 68333
At Wednesday's meeting, Jack Thompson committed to being President Elect for the 2022-2023 Rotary year! In addition, Jim F. expressed his desire to step down as Foundation chair beginning July 1st. The club is in urgent need of a member to take his place. Jim has offered to train the volunteer, and work alongside them, but it will be his last official year as Foundation chair. If you are interested in taking over, please let Tom P. or Jack Thompson know--preferably very soon.
Coin update: There was enough club interest to have 750 coins ordered from Russell Hampton! This makes the cost per coin $1.21 each. There will be plenty to hand out at our Centennial Celebration, give to guests, prospective members, etc. Several members have committed to purchasing 25 or 50 coins. At this time, all that's needed is a commitment of the number you'd like to purchase, and commitment to pay when they come in. Thank you all for your quick responses and support of the idea. I can't wait to see them when they arrive!
Last, but not least, Crete Fire Chief, Tod Allen, spoke to the club about some statistics last year! Tod has been chief since 2013, on the department since 2000, and in fire service since 1988. The squad has 42 members on it, and they are not a split squad. Everyone is trained to be an EMT and Firefighter. In that number, are 7 paramedics trained in Advanced Life Support. The average years of service in the Crete department is 9.87 (the national average is 3 years or less). In 2021, Crete Fire and Rescue responded to 905 total calls. 628 were 911 calls ranging anywhere from medical attention, motor vehicle accidents, fires, to several cancelled calls. 264 were transfers to another facility, 6 standbys, and 7 others. The average response time for the department is 4 minutes 38 seconds. There are 11 vehicles in the fleet--an ambulance alone costs $250,000! The department pays for the training which is about $1400, and the gear for each firefighter is $4400! The average yearly operating expenses for the department are $151,000.
There are so many more fascinating statistics Tod shared. It was nice to see some behind the scenes of what all goes into running a department. The Crete community and surrounding communities are grateful to have such a wonderful department!
