SMS Drama Students To Perform Groovy
Springfield Middle School drama students will take audiences back to the 1960s as they present Groovy on Friday, April 18 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, April 19 at 2:30 p.m.
Performances of the musical will take place in the Springfield High School George E. Tombaugh Auditorium. For ticket information, call (419) 867-5644.
Cast members include: Shaston Kazmierczak, Brittny Hurst, Hailey McDougle, Hallie Craig, Bianca Caniglia, Dylan Tan, Dylan Coale, Shelby Jackson, Julia Sharman, Maddie Sensenstein, Megan Garrison, Kelsey Escue, Robyn Boyce, Suzette Grindle, Casey Valerius, Emma Schultz, Riley Bickerstaff, Kurt Metz, Loren Grow, Kayla McCadney, Stevanie Perkins, Noriah Matanick.
Joseph Wood, Richie Racette, Sarah Buchanan, Paige LaPoint, Shannon Stephensen, Cierra Hewes, Melina Esquivel, Jessica Clark, Chloe Chochard, Kelsey Gravengaard, Brooke Ford, Emma Sweatt, Lauren Yates, Erin Lynch, Chelsey Meadows, Jena Fleischmann, Gabrielle Penn, Michelle Asiedu, Lauren Hadsell, Rachel Helminiak, Kayla Vanslyke, Sarah Duncan, Ashley Childers, Krystl Osborn, Monica Mason, Caitlin Glenn and Paige Ellis.
Fire Chief Delivers Annual Report To Springfield Trustees
BY KELLY J. KACZALA — MIRROR REPORTER
Grants, a new billing program and homeland security were among the highlights noted at a Springfield Township trustee meeting last month by Fire Chief Barry Cousino in the fire department’s 2007 annual report.
The department received over $200,000 in grants last year, including funds to pay for over 40 mobile and portable radios at $3,500 apiece, Cousino said.
The department also received an Assistance to Firefighters grant awarded through the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the purchase of monitor/defibrillators, a Community Development Block Grant to purchase a new boat for surface water rescues and an Ohio Department of Emergency Medical Services Grant to upgrade EMS equipment.
Last July, the department started a billing program for emergency medical transport services. EMS defrays some of the costs associated with emergency medical service, according to Assistant Fire Chief Richard Helminski.
EMS billing collects from existing funds available from Medicare, Medicaid and commercial insurance policies. If residents and/or family members are provided with emergency medical transportation services to a local hospital, “soft billing” for the transport occurs.
Private and government health insurance plans include provisions for EMS transportation. The practice of EMS billing is common throughout the country with approximately 85 percent of communities nationwide participating.
“I hope to report on that more frequently in the future,” Cousino said. “The problem is, when you first set something up like that, it’s a very slow process, getting the insurance companies to recognize us, so the money really comes in slowly initially.”
Last year, the Springfield Township Emergency Services Association Local 3544 hosted a variety of fund-raisers that help support charities. Fund-raisers included an annual golf outing, a Texas hold ’em tournament and the Party by the Pond at Homecoming Park.
Throughout the year, Local 3544 donated $5,000 to charitable organizations such as the Harry E. Patton Scholarship Fund, Aluminum Cans for Burned Children of Northwest Ohio, Safe Kids Coalition, I.A.F.F. Burn Fund and the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Local 3544 also solicited donations at intersections and storefront locations last year to assist the Great Lakes Center for Autism and its annual Give Autism the Boot drive. The Springfield association was honored for collecting the second highest amount of money for the two-day campaign.
Local 3544 members donated time, labor and supplies to cook 600 halves of chicken for the Springfield High School Band Boosters, and provided a chicken dinner for a Perrysburg Township firefighter who had been diagnosed with stage three cancer at a benefit put on by the Perrysburg Township Firefighters, according to Daniel E. Ball, president of Local 3544.
The Springfield Township Firefighters’ Association also participated in many fund-raisers, including a chicken dinner, 50/50 raffle and the Raymond Feeney Car Cruise at the Fourth of July Freedom Celebration at Community Homecoming Park.
The association, in conjunction with the Zeta Tau Alpha Sorority, held its third annual pancake breakfast in support of breast cancer education and research, according to Jeffrey VanDromme, president of the firefighters’ association.
The association, along with the Local 3544, raises funds for the Harry E. Patton Scholarship.
“A lot of accomplishments and events they participated in, as well as some of their fund-raising events, are similar,” said Cousino. There’s been some discussion of the two organizations merging, he added.
There are 41 full-time, 15 part-time and 21 casual employees in the department.
“Under EMS certifications, almost half of our personnel are at the paramedic level, which is a significant number compared to other departments our size,” Cousino said.
Only four were not certified, while 34 were emergency medical technicians, four were advanced EMTs and 36 were paramedics.
Sixty-five members of the department were certified at firefighter II, or the professional firefighter level.
“Ten years ago, we probably had 10 or 12 people who were at the firefighter II level and a majority were at the volunteer firefighter level,” Cousino said. “A lot of credit goes to our training department.”
Only two were not certified, four were volunteer and six were firefighter I.
Annual fire and EMS calls last year totaled 2,692, compared to 2,606 in 2006, 2,235 in 2005, 2,119 in 2004 and 2,026 in 2003.
Cousino said the number of calls jumped significantly in 2006, a reflection of the township contracting with the village of Holland in November 2005 to provide the village with fire and rescue services.
“We had almost $1.3 million in fire loss last year, mostly due to a large apartment complex fire we had early in the season,” Cousino said.
Arson fires accounted for the most dollar loss at $837,100, followed by electrical at $211,030 and accidental at $117,315.
Seventy-seven percent of those transported to hospitals were residents, with most going to St. Luke’s Hospital, followed by Flower, Toledo, University of Toledo Medical Center and St. Anne’s.
Eighty-nine percent of the time the department was able to get to the scene within eight minutes, close to the 90 percent national goal.
“Ninety percent of the time, we’re getting there within 10 minutes,” Cousino said.