Barry Paschal, publisher of The Columbia County News-Times,  proudly wore Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation's logo on his T-shirt while participating in a 5K run to benefit Aimee Copeland, who captured the attention of the world when she was treated at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital. |
Upcoming Events
September 10
4th Annual Savannah Charity Golf Tournament
October 2
Faith Partners Banquet
October 6
Motorcycle Charity Ride
October 11
Jeffrey Chavis Golf Tournament
October 13
Washington County Firefighter's Assoc. Fundraiser
October 13
Southside Fire/EMS Poker Run
October 13
Easley, SC Bootdrive
For more information please contact Bobbie Jo Gainey at bgainey@sfbf.net |
Cookies and Coins!
Director of Development, Bobbie Jo Gainey, enjoyed fresh baked cookies with firefighters from Martinez-Columbia Fire/Rescue after they presented her with a $40,000 donation from their annual boot drive. All those coins really add up! |
Caring by the Numbers
97,400
Number of Can-it! cards and stickers distributed to schools this month. |
Getting information off of the internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant.
Mitchell Kapor |
Hats off to the "Deere" folks at John Deere Commercial Products for their $1,000 contribution to Project Sojourner. |
|
Burn Prevention Tip
Get the lint out! The leading cause of home clothes dryer fires is failure to clean the lint filter before or after each load of laundry. Keep the area around your dryer clear of things that can burn, like boxes, cleaning supplies and clothing. |
Would you like to win a 10 day motorcycle cruise for two March 15-25, 2013? Enjoy a deluxe ocean-view veranda, superb cuisine, entertainment and riding the islands on your OWN bike! Destinations include: Ft. Lauderdale, St. Thomas, St. Kitts, Barbados, Roseau, and St. Maarten. Cost to enter the drawing is $25, and only 400 tickets are being sold! Contact Bobbie Jo Gainey for more details at bgainey@sfbf.net. |
|
|
As I write this newsletter, the heartbeat of summer is slowing. The staff and I enjoyed vacations and "staycations" and now Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation is back in first gear. In this issue, you will hear about several fall "fun" raisers; and you will meet the Over the Sugar Hill Gang, one of the volunteer groups that helps make this happen. You can also read about Steve Farmer, our board treasurer, a man of few words and many talents. Above all, I hope you will read about our journeys into cyperspace and peek at our recently updated webpage, www.sfbf.net. |
|
|
Sweet!
A group of retirees from Imperial Sugar, known as the Over the Sugar Hill Gang, will host the Fourth Annual Savannah Charity Golf Tournament on Monday, September 10, 2012 at Southbridge Golf Club. Tournament Chair Bill Tumlin, Joe Tillman and other retirees of  Imperial Sugar became involved in the aftermath of the February 2008 explosion at the Imperial Sugar Refinery near Savannah. As they learned how the Burn Foundation helped their co-workers and their families, the "Gang" knew they wanted to give back. Fortunately, Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation is the recipient of their annual tournament which netted $6,000 last year. Thanks to Joe Tillman, who solicits military team sponsors, teams of service men and women get to play along with business leaders. It is always fun to spend time with Bill and the Over the Hill Sugar Gang, as we salute our men and women of the armed services, and raise funds for burn patients and their families. For more information email Bobbie Jo Gainey at bgainey@sfbf.net. |
|
Angels in Aprons
Are you one of the nearly 10,000 guests who has stayed at the Chavis House over the past decade? If not, try to imagine serving a hot meal for 20-25 guests everyday. It happens right here at Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation. Rain or shine, holidays or regular days, they arrive.  We call them our Faith Partners. Every day about noon, a group of volunteers from one of the area churches or civic groups arrives with a meal. Quietly they arrive and unload fried chicken, mac and cheese, cakes and pies, and other goodies. They are clearly the most "faithful" and reliable volunteers that I have had the privilege of working with. If you are already one of our Faith Partners, please join us for our Faith Partners Banquet on Tuesday, October 2, at First Baptist Church in Augusta. If your church or civic group would like to be a Faith Partner, call 1-800-650-BURN or email Jennifer McCray at jmccray@sfbf.net |
Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation has a new URL, www.sfbf.net. For those of you who like to talk nerdy, a URL is a Uniform Resource Locator. I looked it up on the internet. In other words, it is our address on the World Wide Web. Although we love our tagline, burnshurtwehelp, we thought sfbf.net might be easier for you to remember when you visit us online. The newly "renovated" website, sfbf.net, is just a baby step into cyberspace as we focus more on interacting with you. I hope you will click through the pages. If you think we are on the right track, "Like" us on Facebook. And yes, we have a Facebook page too!
|
|
Volunteer Spotlight
With Steve Famer watching the Burn Foundation's finances, you can be assured that your donation will be wisely used. Steve is a partner with Cherry Bekaert & Holland, LLP, a CPA firm, which makes him a natural fit as Treasurer for SFBF and his church, Trinity UMC.  When Steve calls it a day, he trades his calculator for a paintbrush, rod and reel, or mandolin. He unwinds by painting landscapes, fly fishing in the North Georgia Mountains or playing the mandolin with a blue grass group. He and his wife, Kelly, have a son and daughter, and soon will be welcoming their first grandchild. It's no secret what Grandpa Steve's new favorite pastime will be. Congrats to the Farmer Family! |
|
I will take The Future for 100, Alex.
It was not a game of Jeopardy when a number of key volunteers participated in discussions led by our planning consultant, Terri Theisen.  As the group began work on a 3-5 year strategic plan, we got some great feedback on issues that will help us decide what our priorities should be in the years ahead. Several questions were posed including: What are the greatest strengths of this organization? What could this organization do better than it does now? What should Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation never stop doing? We need your input. Email them to j.maypole@sfbf.net. |
|
From the Heart...
Labor Day was created in the 1880's as a tribute to American workers in honor of the contributions they make to this great nation. Consider for a minute firefighters and other first responders. Not only do they "serve and protect," they do it with heart. Their responsibilities go beyond fighting fires. They are involved in virtually every type of disaster, often providing emergency medical services. Watch the media's coverage of any local or national disaster and you will see the landscape dotted with the familiar turnout gear worn by firefighters. They are often the first to respond and the last to leave. Residential fires, vehicle accidents, floods, wildfires, factory explosions - the list goes on and on. Have you hugged a firefighter today?
Jo
Jo Maypole
Southeastern Firefighters Burn Foundation |
|
|
