By Greg Gross
The York Dispatch
YORK, Pa. — Summer is nearly here, and so are the firemen’s carnivals.
A number of fire departments throughout the county put on the annual events, which feature rides, games, entertainment and food.
And money raised comes in handy for the departments.
Money raised by Dover’s Union Fire & Hose during its Dover Firemen’s Fair goes to fund its operation.
“It’s our biggest fundraiser of the year,” said Troy Dettinger, assistant chief of Union Fire & Hose in Dover.
For more than 60 years, the department has been putting on the carnival at its 30 E. Canal St. station.
The carnival will be held in early September and features the annual water battle, in which firefighters put their skills to test, on Labor Day.
Extinction: While Dover’s carnival is still going, the same can’t be said for some other departments.
The West York Fire Department’s annual carnival went the way of the dinosaurs a few years ago.
Ira Walker Jr., chief of Eureka Volunteer Fire Co., said a number of departments have problems keeping volunteer numbers up. That likely is why some dropped carnivals from their calendars.
Eureka, however, still holds its annual carnival at the Stewartstown Fairgrounds.
Walker said that while the event is put on by the fire department, a number of community organizations take part in it.
“It’s more than Eureka. It’s like a community carnival,” he said.
Wellsville Fire Co. also continues with its yearly carnival. This year will be the event’s 70th anniversary, said Larry Anderson, the chief.
Wellsville’s carnival features the traditional goings-on, but Anderson said it’s usually one thing in particular that draws the crowd.
“I was always told it’s the food,” he said.
Schedule: Here’s when area fire departments will be holding carnivals.
- Shrewsbury: June 27--July 2
- United Hook & Ladder (New Oxford and Abbottstown): July 5--9
- Jefferson Carnival: July 11--16
- Mason-Dixon Fair (sponsored by Delta-Cardiff Volunteer Fire Co.): July 11--16
- Eureka (Stewartstown): July 18--23
- Pleasant Hill (West Manheim Township): July 25--30
- Wellsville: Aug. 18--20
- Union Fire & Hose (Dover): Sept. 3 and 5--10
For the second year in a row, Eagle Fire Co. in Mount Wolf will host its Firefighter 5K. Registrations are being accepted now.
Money raised during the event will partially go to the department and to purchase an air purifying machine for a New York City firefighter affected by the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The event will be held Sept. 10, beginning at Northeastern High School, 300 High St., Manchester.
There will be a variety of age categories for awards as well as a one mile fun run/walk starting at 8:15 a.m. The 5K run starts at 9 a.m.
To register, call 266-2342 or go to www.firefighter5k.com.
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