TFA President Jim Whaley of Alcoa Fire Department
TFA President Frank Cotton presents the “Firefighter of
the Year” plaque to Capt. Trey Nelms of the Pleasant View Volunteer Fire
Department during the Saturday night banquet of the association.
Memphis Fire Services Color Guard are shown in presenting
the Flags during the Memorial Services at the TFA Conference at Memphis.
Memphis Fire Services Color Guard are shown in presenting
the Flags during the Memorial Services at the TFA Conference at Memphis.
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2007-2008 Officers----TFA
Officers for 2007-2008 of the Tennessee Firemen's Association.
Pictured here left to right (seated) Past President Frank Cotton of
Memphis, Sec/Treas Berenda Vance of Nashville, President Jim Whaley of
Alcoa, (standing) 1st VP Dale Maynard of Murfreesboro, Advisory Board
Member Chief David Baxter of Murfreesboro, 2nd VP Charlie McFarland of
Huntingdon, and Advisory Board Member Gary Miller of Newport. Not
pictured is 3rd VP Mike Berry of Alcoa.
NEW OFFICER: Michael Berry of
Alcoa Fire Dept, left, is the newest member to the TFA Board as
3rd Vice President as he is welcomed by President Jim Whaley (center)
of Alcoa Fire Department and 2nd Vice President Charlie McFarland,
right, of Huntingdon FD.
Greetings from the
President!
Tennessee Fallen Firefighters Memorial
One of my priorities is working to achieve a Tennessee Fallen
Firefighters Memorial (TFFM) to be located at the Tennessee State
Fire Academy in Bell Buckle, Tennessee. As a member of the TFFM
Foundation Committee, I talk to many fire fighters across our state
about this becoming a reality. My hat is off to the dedication,
compassion and hard work of Karen Alexander in her leadership
abilities and passion in pursuing this to becoming a reality. We who
serve on this Committee are indeed fortunate to have available her
talents. The TFFM as of this writing now has a balance of
approximately $90,000. This is still a long way from $250,000. This
balance represents a tribute to all who have contributed and I thank
you for these acts of monetary kindness. There is much left to be
done in the fund raising efforts.
In early 2008 President Bush presented to the American people an
idea of a tax rebate to hopefully help offset the negative economy.
This 168 billion dollar stimulus tax package was enacted by Congress
and signed by President Bush in February 2008. Every person under
the maximum cap who files an IRS Tax Return will be eligible for a
rebate check. Whether you agree or disagree with the stimulus tax
package, the checks are on the way. I am asking each firefighter in
our state that receives a rebate check to donate a portion of that
money to the Tennessee Fallen Firefighter Memorial. Your
contribution can be used as a 100% tax write off, as TFFM is a
501(C)3 organization. Your contribution is the only way the TFFM is
going to be built. I view the rebate money as money I had not
expected to receive and in turn I can contribute a portion to the
TFFM. Hopefully, you will be able to donate enough to buy a brick.
With the high cost of fuel and other rising prices, I know the
difficulties we are all facing. But please help with the cause to
erect this Memorial to our fallen firefighters who died in the line
of duty. Tennessee is one of few states that does not have a
Memorial for its firefighters. We now have an excellent opportunity
to change that. Our state has over 23,000 firefighters associated
with over 700 fire departments. Surely we can come together for the
purpose of building this Memorial. As you visit the Memorial site
upon completion you can look with pride and compassion that you
helped build the Memorial. There may be another time to contribute,
but with the rebate check in hand it is going to be an excellent
opportunity to buy a brick and or contribute to our own who have
lost their lives in the line of duty.
To obtain an application for a brick or how to make a contribution,
please go to the Tennessee Fire Service & Codes Enforcement
Academy’s web page:
www.state.tn.us/commerce/sfm/tfaca
If you have any questions or comments, you can direct them to me.
Please make this one of your top priorities with your tax rebate
check and let groundbreaking begin on the Memorial.
Charles M. Vance
cmvfireasst@comcast.net
2008 Annual Conference will be at Townsend.
Just for your information and planning, the 2008 annual convention
and training conference will be held in Townsend at the Valley View
Lodge on May 29-31 2008.
Reservations are already being accepted. There will be three
choices of rooms Standard rooms $60, Deluxe $80, Pool side $90 on 3
night booking before March 1, 2008. These room rates will be good
for the your stay if you wish to make a family vacation for an
extended stay before or after the convention. This location is 20
minutes from Alcoa/Maryville, 30 minutes from Pigeon Forge,
Gatlinburg, 10 minutes from the Great Smokey Mountain National Park.
Bike trail from the motel parking lot which is around 8 miles. Inner
tubing and trout fishing in the National Park and Townsend. Start
making your plans to attend next year. Valley View Lodge
1-800-292-4844. The Convention registration will be at a later
date. Start making your plans to attend and reserve your room today.
Conference registration information will be announced at a later
date.
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