By Stephen Smoot
Last Saturday night, members of the Franklin Volunteer Fire Department gathered to honor each other, and the mark another year of service to Franklin and to Pendleton County overall.
Attendees started to gather at around 5:30 for the social hour. Those coming in were greeted with friendly faces, warm hearts, and tables of hors d’oeuvres. The selection included sliced cheeses, ham, and sausages, olives, pickles, crackers, a sweet treat with graham crackers and a dip, and much more.
An hour after all arrived, Terry Hedrick, president of the FVFD, welcomed all. He then introduced Sam Harper, who represented Circleville Volunteer Fire Department, to give the opening invocation. Harper prayed, “Thank You for the privilege of serving our community.”
Buffalo Snow Catering provided the buffet style dinner that included grilled chicken, roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese, salad, rolls, and a variety of fresh made desserts.
A little later on, Hedrick shared that “we very much appreciate the volunteers, the people that support us, and the political bodies behind us” after introducing special guests that included elected and appointed officials on hand for the event.
Jeff Bowers then took to the podium to fulfill his role as ceremonial toastmaster. Smiling, he opened up by shouting, “Can everybody hear my loud mouth?” Some playfully responded, “No!”
He replied, “Then I’ll talk louder!” and called for “a round of applause” for those who set up the appetizer table.
One of the great traditions of the FVFD dinner lies in Bowers gently “roasting” its leadership. He told stories about Hedrick where veracity may have mattered less than if it garnered a good laugh from those in attendance.
Bowers requested that all officers for FVFD come forward for their swearing in. These included Hedrick for president, Bobby Murphy, vice president, Evers Turner, Jr., and Katelyn Frank, serving as joint secretaries, Mary Ann Nelson, treasurer, Mason DiFalco, bugler, Richard Nelson (who could not attend), chief, Andrew Bodine, assistant chief, Brian DiFalco, captain, Doug Hartman, first lieutenant, Warren Hedrick, second lieutenant, and Darren Hedrick, safety officer.
A number of men who had proudly donned their blue uniforms for the day, symbols of both service and sacrifice, raised their hands at once and swore their oath.
Bowers then shared another lengthy joke in which he inserted Hedrick as the main character to the delight of those watching. Then came that special time in the evening where tenure and excellence in service were honored.
This started with presentations for those who reached milestones of service. These included Cory Thomas who has put in five years, Dalton Bland 10, Brian DiFalco 25, Eddie Caplinger 30, and Johnny Murphy, who has served for four decades.
Colin Simmons, whose personal slogan was said to be “wait on me!” was named Firefighter of the Year.
The 2024 Outstanding Firefighter of the year was Brian DiFalco.
The next award was not one listed in the program, but was for the Junior Firefighter of the Year. This man was described as “dependable” with the wish that “we had 20 more of him” because he would respond to “a twig in the road or a house burning.”
Mason DiFalco earned that honor, but his father, Brian, added, “He still can’t beat me out the door!”
Turner then said of the last awardee, Officer of the Year, “I thank him for all he does in the department,” then called on Terry Hedrick to receive the award.
Hedrick softly replied once on stage “that was something I was not expecting. Thank you.” He then stated that “I want to recognize Buffalo Snow for the meal,” adding during applause for the providers of the food, “I want to thank you for the good job you did.”
In 2024, FVFD answered 160 calls, “which is more than we normally run,” noted Terry Hedrick.
Harper then returned for the closing benediction. He said, “I got my start with Franklin fire many years ago. It’s good to see young people in our companies. We have several new people in our company.”
He then shared the importance of relying on the brotherhood and sisterhood of firefighters. “If you do this long enough, there are calls that stick in your mind,” Harper commented.
Harper went on to say, “That’s why we’re all here. Everyone needs someone to talk to.” He urged all to recognize that keeping experiences bottled in helps no one and that departments “will deploy all available resources to help.”
The closing prayer included, “We thank You for the call, for being able to do good.”
