Assistant Chief Benny Beck, 2014 Firefighter of the Year recipient, presents Firefighter Kelly Maness with the 2015 award.
Firefighter/EMT Kelly Maness was selected as the 2015 Firefighter of the Year at the annual fire department Christmas Dinner held on December 5th at Coleridge Fire Department Station 9.
This award is voted on by the membership of the department for a firefighter who has gone above and beyond and shown exceptional dedication, hard work, and professionalism in the department.
“This award is one of the highest honors in the fire department, because you were selected by your peers”, said Assistant Chief Benny Beck, as he presented the award.
Are you a high school student who may be interested in becoming a firefighter? These after school classes will be hosted at the Randolph Community College Emergency Services Training Center. When you finish, you will have many of the classes you need to become a certified NC firefighter.
Below is an audio recording of Chief “Larry Mac” McAlister’s Last Call ceremony that was preformed on the Randolph County Fire Dispatch channel at the graveside service on January 7th, 2015.
Charles Lawrence “Larry Mack” McAlister, 73, of 4541 NC Hwy 22 South, Ramseur, NC, died Sunday, January 4, 2015 at his residence.
Funeral Services, 3:00 PM, Wednesday, January 7, 2015, at Concord United Methodist Church, Coleridge.
Officiating, Rev. Ed Carter, George Kivett.
Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Larry was a native of Guilford County, a retired electrician from Eveready with 25 years of service, and a member of Concord UMC for 53 years. He was a fireman with Coleridge Fire Department for 38 years, serving as Captian, Assistance Chief, and Chief. He was preceded in death by father, Charles B. McAlister, two grandchildren, Whitney Gentry, Savannah Gentry.
Survivors: wife, Pat Powers McAlister, of the home, daughters, Lisa McAlister Capps, and husband Kenny, of Milton, FL., Susan McAlister Leonard, and husband, Ty, of Coleridge, mother, Ruth McAlister McCrickard, of Ramseur, grandchildren, Matt Rector, and wife, Stephanie, of Ramseur, Tyler Leonard, and wife, Jennifer, of Yokota Air Base, Japan, Autumn Capps, of Milton, FL., great granddaughter, Aria Elizabeth Leonard.
The family wishes to express a special thank you to Hospice of Randolph County, Coleridge Fire Department, family and friends.
Visitation, 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM, Tuesday, at the Coleridge Fire Department, and other times at the residence.
In 2014, the Coleridge-Erect Volunteer Fire Department responded to 388 incidents (unofficial), which is the highest call volume since electronic records began in Randolph County in 1993. This number is subject to vary slightly as the remainder of call reports are entered into NFIRS.
Once the call reports are finalized, we will post a breakdown of the statistics on this site.
At the Coleridge-Erect Volunteer Fire Department annual Christmas dinner held on December 6th, Assistant Chief Benny Beck received the 2014 Firefighter of the Year award. The recipient of this award is voted on by the membership of the department to a firefighter who has shown outstanding dedication to the department and the community over the past year.
The Coleridge-Erect Fire District has received an improved rating of 6/9E, effective March 1, 2015, which should result in reduced homeowner insurance premiums for citizens living within 5 miles of its two stations.
The new rating was issued by the N.C. Department of Insurance’s Office of State Fire Marshal.
Coleridge-Erect Chief Keith Davis announced the improved rating of 6/9E to members at the department’s Christmas Party held Dec. 6.
“They were tickled,” he noted about the reaction.
He said the previous rating was 9E across the department’s entire 6-mile district.
“Now it is a 6 within a 5-mile district and (remains) a 9E in any area over 5 miles away.”
The new rating impacts homeowners’ insurance premium rates. The improvement should allow those within a 5-mile area of the department’s two fire stations to be eligible to receive reduced insurance premium rates.
“They should see a fairly sizable reduction. The exact amount will be based on an individual’s insurance carrier,” Davis said.
He explained that community support assisted the department in improving its rating. More property owners have signed agreements for use of their ponds as draft water sites for tankers to use in fighting fires in addition to the nine hydrants, along N.C. 22, in its coverage area.
“We’re all working together for it,” Davis said about the new rating. The fire district serves a population of more than 3,600.
The department was notified of the improved rating by Wayne Goodwin, N.C. insurance commissioner and state fire marshal.
The new rating was based on a required state inspection of the department, performed every five years, as part of the N.C. Response Rating System. The inspections look at proper staffing levels, sufficient equipment, proper maintenance of equipment, communications capabilities and availability of water.
The rating system ranges from 1 (highest possible) to 10 (not recognized as a certified fire department by the state), with most rural departments falling into the 9S category. State officials noted that, while lower rating don’t necessarily indicate poor service, a higher rating does suggest a department is overall better equipped to respond to fires in its district. Higher ratings can also significantly lower homeowners insurance rates in a fire district.
“I’d like to congratulate Chief Davis for his department’s performance and for the hard work of all the department members,” Goodwin said. “The citizens in the Coleridge-Erect Fire District should rest easy knowing they have a fine group of firefighters protecting them and their property in case of an emergency.”
State law requires the Office of the State Fire Marshal to inspect departments serving districts of 100,000 people or less, which account for all but six fire districts in North Carolina.
Article published by Kathi Keys of The Courier-Tribune on December 8th, 2014.
Coleridge-Erect Volunteer Fire Department 