Yaphank, NY - October 18, 2013 - The Suffolk County Fire Academy held its annual graduation on Saturday, October 12. The event celebrates Suffolk County’s newest volunteer fire fighters, who completed extensive training courses at the academy, and are now ready to respond to resident’s calls for help throughout the County. Legislator Kate Browning (WF-Shirley) attended the graduation and also presented a proclamation to Executive Director Arthur Bloom of the recently formed Fire Academy Foundation to recognize the significance of the Foundation’s creation.
The Fire Academy Foundation is a federally registered non-profit corporation whose purpose is to raise money from the private sector and major corporations to offset budget cuts to the Suffolk County Fire Academy. The funds will help purchase needed equipment and increase training available to fire departments. The Fire Academy is the official training center for more than 11,000 members of 109 fire departments who the protect lives and property of Suffolk County residents every day. The newly formed fund will ensure these volunteers continue to receive the finest training in the Country at no cost to taxpayers. Individuals and companies can directly make tax-deductible donations to support the vital public safety work performed by the Suffolk County Fire Academy.
“As we welcome our newest volunteer firefighters to Suffolk County it is critical that we continue to support our volunteers with the highest level of training we can provide,” stated Legislator Kate Browning. “The Fire Academy Foundation is a unique and innovative approach to continue that mission without having to make drastic changes to how we offer training in Suffolk County. I applaud the Fire Academy Foundation for their efforts to fund important programs with private monies as government subsidies continue to dwindle.”