West Webster Volunteer Fireman’s Association Ladies Auxiliary

First Responders | West Webster Volunteer Fireman’s Association Ladies Auxiliary
www.westwebsterfd.org/content/auxiliary/

While the West Webster Volunteer Fireman’s Association (WWVFA) is the hard-working provider of emergency services to the West Webster Fire District, other organizations support the work of the volunteers.  One such organization is the Ladies’ Auxiliary.  Founded in 1932, the organization was founded to feed the firefighters and fundraise to secure necessary and expensive equipment for their work. Today the organization is gender-neutral, welcoming parents and partners of all its firefighting force and it supports the volunteer organization in ever-expanding ways. They plan events and offer support and socialization, not only to their members, but to the community as well.

The Auxiliary members provide meals, snacks, and beverages at all large fires and for natural disasters, feeding the community as well as the firefighters.  They raise money for both community and WWVFAI needs and have added craft sales, knife sales, and other creative fundraisers, often providing manpower for these causes as well as funding sources.  Donations of items, time, and money have been given. They have packed boxes for local soldiers deployed to the Middle East and have extended help to local and national organizations, as well as to individuals and families who are in need.

Auxiliary members still march (and win awards) in local parades as they did in the 1930s.  They provide support for those who are in need of care, hold celebratory events, reach out to shut-in members during the holidays, and are there for those in times of illness and sorrow.  Attending funerals is an important role that they partake in, showing the fallen member’s family how important they were and how much they meant to the WWFAI and Auxiliary.  Some members continue to participate in regional auxiliary organizations, including the Monroe County Ladies/ Auxiliary.  Some members of the Auxiliary serve on the Association’s medical team.

The Auxiliary’s support is sometimes event-driven.  Both the 1991 ice storm and the 2017 windstorm provided the Auxiliary with an opportunity to feed and care for neighbors in the community, including the many firefighters and linesmen who came to Webster from out of town.   Following the horrific shootings of First Responders on December 24, 2012, the West Webster Ladies’ Auxiliary was tasked with coordinating menus, soliciting donations, and preparing meals. There was overwhelming support from other local auxiliaries who enabled these members to attend the funerals of their friends and assisted them in providing meals for the members, families, and hundreds of out-of-town guests.  Thousands of people were fed during the week and the excess food was delivered to shelters, charities, and fire stations throughout Monroe County.  The Auxiliary remains ready to respond whenever needed.

The Auxiliary meets monthly from September through June and welcomes new family members to join them at any time.


Sources:

  • Esther A. Dunn, WEBSTER… Through the Years (Webster Town Board, 1971).
  • William R. Schlegel and Lawrence J. Gleason, The West Webster Volunteer Fireman’s Association, 1926-2001.    
  • West Webster Fire Department Website

Thanks to:

  • Alana Sansone and Corrine Volo: research and summary of recent West Webster Ladies’ Auxiliary History

February, 2019