City of Lamoni

A Volunteer Fireman's 4th of July

July 13, 2023

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On the heels of another fun-filled Lamoni 4th of July, it occurred to me that most may not have any idea what commitment to the Lamoni Volunteer Fire Department looks like. Just for fun, we thought we'd give you the rundown.

The day starts around 8 a.m. making sure all of the equipment is ready to go and power washed to shine. As soon as that is done, its' time to head to Pleasanton for the 10:00 a.m. parade. Once that concludes, its time to get back to Lamoni to get in a quick lunch.

Then it's time to get ready for the Noon lineup for Lamoni's parade at 1 p.m. The parade itself wraps up around 2:00 p.m. Then there's a little break until it's time to get ready for the annual firework display.

Around 5:00 p.m. they head to the Lamoni Fairgrounds to setup the electronic boards and wiring for the caks and mortars (fireworks). This about a 3 -hour process to get things safely setup for a successful display. During which, the crew grabs a quick supper (pizza traditionally) eaten at the field. Fireworks are scheduled to go off at 9:30 p.m.; the show takes around 30 minutes.

Once the show is over, it's time to clear the field and make sure there aren't any mis-fires or unfired. Cleanup and packing away the instruments takes another 30 minutes or so... and back to the station. Once the trucks are readied for the next call and put away, it's been a lllooonnnggg day. Just enough day left to hit the shower before calling it a night. From around 8:00 a.m. to 11 p.m. is a lot of work for ZERO pay.

"All of this is outside of the everyday... being at the ready for any emergency. Thank you to all the volunteers for your hard work. Lamoni is very lucky to have you and appreciates all you do to go above and beyond." - Mayor Doug Foster

A big thank you to those participating this fourth:  Curt Shields - Chief, Peter Vogel - Asst. Chief, Bruce Blair, and Taryne Heintz. Also on the roster are: Anthony Cray, Kevin Lloyd, Connor Seymour, Andy Vogel, and Logan & Michael Wilson.