On this Labor Day, I am especially thankful for all the “public servants” who toil for what are sometimes lower than private industry wages and those who volunteer their services as fire fighters to help their neighbors. This weekend we’ve seen the hard work of our fight fighters throughout the Central Texas area. Austin’s are professional union fire fighters, and many of the surrounding counties have volunteer or combination of professional and volunteer fire fighters. These folks are people who risk their lives to help people they likely don’t even know- truly, acts of selflessness.
Yesterday, we had a fire in our neighborhood. I was on my way back after doing a presentation on floral design in Round Rock when Mark called and told me he had our daughter, my sister, the dogs, the computer hard drives and an original piece of artwork in the car and was evacuating because there was a fire down the road. Not realizing just how close the fire was, I told him I was almost home & I was going to go walk our pony out. By the time I hit the driveway, he called and said they had the fire under control and we could stay at home. Extremely fast action saved a lot of homes and possibly some lives. Because Wildwood is a small road with only one way in/out, the folks there couldn’t get out, because the fire was right at the road. Words really can’t express how grateful we are that our fire department made it here so quickly and did such a great job. Then they left to go to the larger fire that has taken some homes out in the Stagecoach subdivision which is out on Hamilton Pool Rd & RR12, miles from here. Imagine if they’d already all be there- it would have taken them at least 20 minutes to get back, and 20 minutes could have made the difference between control and catastrophe.
People who give this type of service deserve our thanks and our respect. When our local volunteer fire department asks for a tax increase so that they can buy better fire fighting equipment, this is one woman who is going to work as hard as I can to make sure that passes. We still have our home and all that is in it, as do our neighbors, thanks to the work they did.
The firefighters in Austin are still working at the Steiner Ranch fire. It is another dangerous situation and they’ve worked tirelessly since yesterday. We saw the same devotion to duty and their fellow Texans when we had the tragedy of the Scenic Brook fire in July. As I pointed out to someone, the “socialistic” firefighters on Austin more than earned their wages then! Some worked overnight into the next day, making sure that no more homes burned, finding hot spots and making it safe. Tea party folks think we shouldn’t “make” people pay taxes, but taxes are indeed what support our fire departments, whether they are volunteer or professional. Taxes are used for the safety and betterment of our community. When you understand this, taxes make sense. Of course, we want the best value, but just one day like yesterday should help everyone to understand the importance of “community” and the sharing of financial responsibility through taxes for all who live in the community. Imagine if we had privatized fire departments. They would need to check to see if you had paid your “dues” and if not, they’d stand by and let your place burn- the problem with this is that because your place burns, it could well become a large enough fire to burn my place, even though I’d paid my “dues.” By sharing the responsibility for paying for things like firefighters, police, roads, libraries, and so many others, we are all benefit.
Even now, firefighters have been called to the next road over again. A neighbor called to let us know she heard it on the scanner, and we stood & watched as the fire trucks came roaring up Nutty Brown Rd. We can’t see any smoke, so that is a good thing. Good luck everyone, please be careful with fire this weekend. Cook inside, don’t risk grilling outside, the home you save may be your own.
