By Ron Heal
What makes the perfect Valentine’s gift to a volunteer fire fighter who has been on the job for 37 years? For Marcia Kelly, the perfect gift to her husband Ken was a 1960 series 900 American LaFrance 750-gpm pumper.
In 1979 Ken Kelly joined the Haverford Township (PA) Bureau of Fire as a cadet. He has been with the suburban Philadelphia Brookline Volunteer Fire Department, Havertown, Pennsylvania, since 1982 and currently serves as assistant chief. When Ken first came on at Havertown, the first piece of fire apparatus he learned to drive was a 900 series American LaFrance pumper. Over the years, one thing on Ken’s “to do” list was to one day own a 900 series LaFrance.
Two years ago, Marcia found the perfect Valentine’s gift for Ken—his very own 900 series LaFrance pumper. The rig that Marcia found originally served the Keyser Volunteer Fire Department, Mineral County, West Virginia. The rig was sold to a private collector in Western Pennsylvania. That owner needed a rig with an automatic transmission and decided the cost involved to convert from the standard transmission to an automatic transmission was more than he wanted to spend. That made the pumper available once more. Marcia had the perfect gift for Ken. Now that certainly ranks as a top-drawer gift for any fire apparatus enthusiast! While the pumper was in running order, the 250-mile distance to Havertown and the mountainous terrain made transporting the rig the best choice to bring it to its new home. K & S Towing brought the rig home on a lowboy trailer.
Over the next two years the 750-gpm pumper would come close to a “frame off” restoration. The first order of business was to remove the add-on white cab top. Convertibles just make better looking parade rigs! Ken was able to do much of the restoration himself with some good help from family. Ken was often joined by his son Steven. A steel water tank was replaced with a stainless-steel tank. Brakes, brake lines, and tires were upgraded. Hosebed flooring was replaced with a new red oak deck. All compartments were redone. Lights were replaced. All chrome and diamond plate was cleaned and polished. Then it was time for a fresh coat of paint. Moppert Brothers of Morton, Pennsylvania, did the painting. After reassembly, a final touch was the gold leaf lettering and striping added by Design Brilliance, Morton, Pennsylvania.
The lettering that Ken chose goes back to the Kelly family’s Irish roots. Ken decided to honor his grandmother Nora Kelly (nee Coyne) and the Coyne family by calling the pumper Clonbur Fire Co. Clonbur is the village in County Galway, Ireland, where his family came from. The number 33 indicates Havertown, locally known as the 33rd county in Ireland.
One of the biggest honors the Kelly’s have experienced with their now bright and shiny fully restored pumper was using the American LaFrance 900 to escort their son Kenny Jr. to church to marry his best friend and then escort the newlyweds from the church following the ceremony. The “Just Married” sign on the tailboard was done in gold leaf!
Ken and Marcia take their prized pumper to many events including parades and musters. Last summer, the the Cradle of Liberty Antique Fire Apparatus Association held their SPAAMFAA chapter muster at Cooper River Park, Pennsauken, New Jersey. The 1960 American LaFrance pumper took home the Best of Show award.
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Posted: Apr 16, 2018
Ed Hutchinson became Greensburg's fire chief when Harry Truman was president and retired 53 years later, and through those decades he was a community leader whose impact stretched far beyond the city's fire halls.
“He was not only a fire chief, but a great community servant. I am stunned today,” Greensburg Mayor Robert Bell said Sunday of Hutchinson's death Sunday morning at age 96 at Excela Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg.
- PUB DATE: 4/16/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
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Posted: Apr 16, 2018
The controversial program that pays veteran Los Angeles police officers and firefighters nearly double for the last five years of their careers received a flood of new enrollees in February, records show.
The rush to join the Deferred Retirement Option Plan, or DROP program, coincided with a Times investigation in February that found the program, which was created in 2002 to keep veteran officers and firefighters on the job, allows participants to file workers' compensation claims and then take extended injury leaves at nearly twice their usual pay.
- PUB DATE: 4/16/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Los Angeles Times
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Posted: Apr 16, 2018
The FDNY’s “zero tolerance” for drug abuse has gone up in smoke.
Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro has quietly abandoned the department’s once-trumpeted policy calling for the firing of anyone caught using illegal or prohibited substances, The Post has learned.
In the last month, 26 firefighters who had tested positive on urine tests since 2016 were returned to full duty, insiders revealed.
- PUB DATE: 4/16/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: New York Post
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Posted: Apr 16, 2018
Two Arlington firefighters and a Arlington Water Utilities crew member were injured while responding to a gas leak that occurred Sunday afternoon in central Arlington.
All three were transported to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas. The extent of their injuries is not known.
According to Arlington Fire Department spokesman Mike Joiner, Arlington Water Utilities crews were repairing a water line leak at the intersection of Ditto Avenue and Dugan Street.
- PUB DATE: 4/16/2018 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: Fort Worth Star-Teleram
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