President Stacie Cook rang the bell to start the meeting at 12:05 PM. She then invited Dave Hartman to lead the invocation, followed by the pledge and the song, "Smile, Sing a Song," led by Arnold Oliver.
We had two guests attending the meeting: Mary Teague and Karen Hughes. Treston Teague and Jim Hughes introduced them. Karen is the lovely wife of our speaker today.
During the meeting, David Hartman informed us that Shirley Craft was in hospice. Her husband Ken has appreciated the visitors, but at this time they ask to keep it to close family only. Please continue to keep Shirley in your prayers. Judy Koetter also requested prayers for her youngest son, Billy, who was recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
A few reminders: By the time you read this, we will have already had a successful Flag Day and the RSVP date for the Annual Party will have passed. Additionally, we will not be meeting on Thursday, July 4th. If you haven't filled out a committee preference sheet for the upcoming year, please contact Tina Williams or John Mayfield.
During the Brag Bucket segment, Carol Murray collected money from Noel Filer, Cara Sauceda, and Rod Tieken. Noel announced the birth of her new granddaughter, Lily; Cara announced that her kids were attending church camp next week; and Rod bragged about his 6-year-old grandson's West Side All-Star Baseball team winning the city championship.
The member spotlight featured Danny Steed. Danny gave a history of his upbringing, sharing stories about the many positions he held, his education, his marriage, and how he ended up in real estate for the last 48 years.
Josh Phillips then introduced our program titled "The History of the WF Fire Department." Our fellow member, Donald Hughes, Chief of the Wichita Falls Fire Department, presented the program. The WF Fire Department (WFFD) initially started in 1891, based on Benjamin Franklin's Fire Department template. The department consisted of Captain John Zeigler and 36 volunteers. Chief Hughes informed the club about the early department's operations and location. It wasn't until 1907 that the city had its first paid fire department. Back then, firefighters would often demolish burning buildings to save surrounding structures. A burning building was practically considered a lost cause. This practice is entirely different from how fires are fought today.
The oil boom of 1918 led to a rapid increase in construction, often bypassing building codes, which resulted in many fires.
In 1920, the fire department became fully paid. Chief Hughes concluded his talk by discussing the department's current state. It has a budget of $21,602,550, with personnel being the largest expense. There are 52 rostered firefighters, with 41 on duty at any given time. He then discussed the new 2023 fleet, special operations, safety and training, the Fire Marshal, and Emergency Management. He ended the program by inviting questions.
The meeting ended with Stacie presenting the speaker's gift and leading the club in the Four-Way Test.