Living Next to a Fire Hall

To the firemen stationed at the local Cloverdale firehall in two-thousand-and-three to two-thousand-and-four, you will never be forgotten in my mind for coming to our rescue when we needed help the most. My dad had fallen off a ladder while placing décor int the house, and he suffered a serious head injury when he hit the tiled floor. As blood began to pool, we called the emergency line and immediately, within minutes, firemen and emergency medical services personnel arrived and whisked my dad to the Royal Columbia Hospital. While you guys were only doing your duty, what you did next really touched my heart and made me all the more grateful to have firemen work close to our house. I never would have expected it but you mowed our lawn for several months, and I never got to fully thank you for your help, until many years had past, and by then, there was a new crew in the station. I just want to say thank you for your kindness to our family and for saving my dad’s life. In fact, my dad used to be a fireman in Hong Kong, and so I have a deep appreciation for firemen and what they do—risking their lives to save others.

While I never got to know your names, I will always remember your team as my heroes; the people, along with the doctors and EMS staff who saved my dad’s life. While my dad may not be able to communicate clearly, I’m sure he would be grateful for what you’ve done for him, giving him a second lease on life.

Your actions have given me a desire to help fire emergency staff as best I can as a citizen of Surrey. I have reported at least four smoldering fires from cigarette butts over the past two years and will continue to diligently help you guys spot any other flare-ups. I guess it’s my way of saying thank you by doing my part to report any fire hazards.

Lastly, I’d like to thank the firemen who taught the first aid and AED course at the Cloverdale Recreation Centre, who taught me the basics of how to spot injuries or dangers and to treat people who are in medical distress. While some of the jokes made by you guys were a little cheesy, I appreciated the time you spent helping us to learn to save people’s lives, just as you do on a regular basis.

So to conclude, I am deeply appreciative for all the hard work, care and thoughtfulness you have shown me and my family, and if you ever need help with geographic information systems or maps, I’d be glad to repay my debts and help you out as a GIS analyst. One final mention I would like to make though is that you should probably stop putting up the same Halloween décor that you do every year, the one with the witch crashing into the lamp post. While it is a little amusing, I’m just not a Halloween fan, that’s all. I pray that you and your team, wherever you guys are now will stay safe and realized how grateful I am for your services. I hope you will continue saving people’s lives and helping those in need as we need more people like yourself to make society a better place. I can’t thank you enough, and so I hope to visit you guys someday and express my gratitude in person wherever you may be. I would be glad to sit down for a coffee and chat about that heroic rescue of my dad many years ago.