The members of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association at the April 2023 Meeting
On April 16th, 2023, the members of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association met for our quarterly meeting. We discussed the happenings at the NJ Firemen’s Home and following the State regulations as we prepare to host our Summer barbecue in June for the residents and their guests. We are also planning a second barbecue in August with a special party planned for member who is turning 100 this year. More detail on that are forthcoming.
We were impressed by the number of donations from our fellow fire departments all over Bergen County, NJ for their generous donations to help fund the entertainment, refreshments and gifts to the NJ Firemen’s Home in the future. We want to thank our Brother Firefighters for thinking about the residents of the home and assisting our brothers and sisters. We…
The members of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association met for the first of our annual meeting on the afternoon of February 19th, 2023. Members had come from all over Bergen County to attend the meeting.
We discussed our Calendar for the year of events planned. We discussed the recent fundraiser that the organized for much needed funds for the organization to run the upcoming barbecue in June and the Christmas Party in December (can you believe that is in nine months?).
The Members’ of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association at the June Barbecue in June 2022.
Our Head of Fundraising reported that the fund drive is going well. We are actually ahead in fundraising so far and many departments have been very generous. There are still some departments that have never given to the organization in the past but we will try to reach out to them.
The members of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association met at the Harrington Park Fire House to start the stuffing of the envelopes to start the fundraising efforts of the organization. Over coffee and doughnuts, we stuffed envelopes for all the fire companies in Bergen County, NJ.
Monies raised by the fundraiser help pay for entertainment, refreshments, the food for the barbecue, gifts to the residents and for items that residents might need.
The Summer Barbecue at the NJ Firemen’s Home in August 2022
To all our fellow firefighters, please be on the lookout for our mailers. Your department’s donation to the organization goes a long way.
The members at the Annual Christmas Party in December 2022
If you are interested in becoming a member of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association, please attend one of our meetings at the Boonton Firemen’s Home in Boonton, NJ. Our meetings are February…
I am now in the middle of my eighteen year on the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department.
We have just sworn in the the 2023 Officers for the Department. Time has really flown by. What amazed me is this class of Officers, many of the them being members of the former Engine One Company, have really progressed in the Department over the last few years. It has been fun to see them grow and want to take a more active role in the Department.
I hope the hard work we did years earlier inspired them to move up the ladder in the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department. We wish our fellow Brothers the best of luck in the coming year!
The Officers of the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department 2023
The new Officers are:
Chief Michael Greco
First Assistant Chief Kevin Todd
Second Assistant Chief Christian Fernandez
Captain Miguel Gonzalez
Lieutenant Marc Pagan
Lieutenant Nick Lorenzo
Lieutenant Dan Wixon
Secretary Ed Mucha
Treasurer James Carlin
Our Officers being sworn in:
Chief Michael Greco with his wife and two children
First Assistant Chief Kevin Todd
Second Assistant Chief Christian Fernandez
Our Line Officers:
Captain Miguel Gonzalez, Lieutenant Marc Pagan, Treasurer James Carlin and Secretary Ed Mucha
We wish you all a very safe and healthy year and hope that you lead the Department to another productive year!
It has been a long time since we had a Christmas Party at the NJ State Firemen’s Home and it was nice to be back. We had to follow all COVID protocols and wore masks during our visit to the home.
Let the party begin!
The entertainment room was set for Christmas
We started our day with a get together of the members before the entertainment began. It was nice to just sit back and talk to the other members before the entertainment began. It gave the Executive Board a chance to talk and we took our first group shot since I joined the Board last year. We make a very impressive bunch.
The Executive Board of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association
I even got a chance to bond with the resident dog of the NJ State Firemen’s Home, Wells, who was a former seeing eye dog that has…
The Members of the Bergen County Firemen’s Home Association in July 2022
It was a spectacular day for a barbecue!
After having to cancel our June Barbecue because of bad weather (there was a rain storm all day on our date in June), we lucked out on July 10th when we had the most spectacular sunny and warm day with no humidity. Clear sunny skies and low 80-degree weather had the residents of the NJ State Firemen’s Home coming out in droves to enjoy good music and delicious food.
With a menu of hamburgers, hot dogs, barbecue ribs and chicken, corn on the cob, baked beans and chili, macaroni and potato salads and fresh watermelon for dessert residents and members had a wonderful lunch under the shade trees and tents that were set up on the lawn outside the home.
We followed all COVID protocols to keep the residents and…
A group of us from the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department joined dozens of other fire departments in Bergen County, NJ to wish our brothers on the Wood Ridge Fire Department our best at their 125th Anniversary Celebration. It was a nice afternoon of food, entertainment and good conversation. It was nice to see everyone having a good time on this sunny afternoon.
I know that I can be quite the traditionalist and like to keep up events that have been successful. I also like to build on them and see them grow over time.
The old Engine One Barbecue that we used to have after every Meeting/Drill night in June started as just a small dinner one night when we wanted to barbecue hamburgers and hot dogs after our drill. Members of our company were joined by other members from other companies enjoyed themselves and it was mentioned at our next department meeting. Some members complained that we didn’t invite them (they were more than happy to come to the drill night). So the next year we sent out invitations for the barbecue that would be after the drill/meeting night.
Firefighter Justin Watrel, Barbecue Chairman, June 2022 Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department Meeting night
For the next eleven summers, we continued the tradition and it grew over time and the menu began to vary. We went from simple hamburgers and hot dogs we morphed into creative salads, baked ziti and doctored up Baked Beans with things like black strap molasses, maple syrup hot sauce and cured bacon.
Homemade Baked Ziti and Potato Salad
I got even more creative with the desserts. I used to order an ice cream cake with a fire engine on it but no one would eat it. So I changed it around and did more traditional desserts like cake cookies, brownies and rice crispy treats. I even experimented with desserts that are traditional to a barbecue like watermelon and apple pie but they were not as popular.
Me preparing for dinner in 2017
As time went on, members would bring their family to the event and many of our old timers and their wives were invited so that they could meet up together again. We were averaging 50 to 60 people at every barbecue so it was hard to judge who to cook for that evening.
Our senior members with their wives at the 2015 barbecue
COVID affected the event just after we merged the department in 2019 and we stopped the event for two years. It was nice for me when the department voted to bring the barbecue dinner back at the May Department meeting. It gave me a chance to put my Hyatt banquet skills back and dig back into my culinary skills.
Setting up snacks and drinks at the barbecue
The menu was kept simple since it was just the department members after the June Department Meeting. We grilled hamburgers, hot dogs and Italian Sausage. For the sides, I made a homemade Baked Ziti, a Red Bliss Potato Salad with Bacon and Baked Beans with all sorts of chips and popcorn and for dessert I made traditional dessert of various flavored Cake Cookies, Brownies and Rice Cripsy Treats. Those Rice Cripsy Treats really disappeared.
What I liked about the barbecue was the compliments from the other guys on the department and what a good time they had. It was nice to bring this comradre back after this long spell of COVID. As usual, I want to thank Firefighter Bernie Valente for helping with all the barbecuing and for being our grill master.
Firefighter and Grill Master Bernie Valente
It’s good to make a group of firemen happy!
Firefighter Justin Watrel setting up the homemade desserts of brownies, cookies and rice crispy treats
The Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department Annual Inspection May 21st, 2022
For the first time in two years (due to the COVID pandemic), the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department stood for Inspection for the Borough of Hasbrouck Heights.
All department members worked during the week washing, scrubbing and cleaning every piece of apparatus, cleaning all the tools and organizing all the cabinets to be sure that everything was in place. Then we cleaned the fire house from top to bottom. Every room was cleaned and vacuumed and shown the pride the department has in our firehouse.
The Department Inspection was led by Chief Tim Moots, First Assistant Chief Kevin Todd and Second Assistant Chief Mike Greco. The members stood attention for the flag salute, a special greeting by Chief Moots and speeches by invited dignitaries.
The Department invited the community to join in inspecting all of the department’s equipment and out of town chiefs judged each piece of apparatus, two engines, the ladder truck, the rescue truck and the two ambulances for appearance and equipment check. The rescue truck won that evening.
After the Inspection of the equipment was over, the members of the fire department and their invited guests joined together for an Italian dinner in our large meeting room. It was nice way for everyone to come together after a two-year gap.
Good luck and Godspeed to all members of the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department in 2022!
Fire Fighter Justin Watrel assigned to the Ambulance Squad for “Best Equipment Contest” at the 2022 Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department Inspection.
I still can’t believe that Christmas came so quickly this year. It was almost like the blink of an eye. With the start of the Christmas holidays, there are many cherished Christmas events in Hasbrouck Heights that have become tradition.
Downtown Hasbrouck Heights, NJ is always so beautifully decorated for the holidays (Heights Flower Shoppe)
Starting with the Christmas Parade the day after Thanksgiving, this annual event showcases our wonderful downtown in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ and dazzles us at the end of the parade with the Annual Christmas Tree Lighting and Caroling. It had been so cold that night that the crowds were more subdued than usual (remember COVID is still going on) but no less spirited.
The Neil Parrot Playhouse decorated for Christmas at the Hasbrouck Heights Circle
The Fire Department escorted Santa down the parade route to the Christmas tree and was greeted by the Hasbrouck Heights Community , who were ready for some Christmas cheer. When the switch turned on, we were dazzled by the lights of the trees and decorations that grace the Circle in Hasbrouck Heights.
The Christmas Tree at the Hasbrouck Heights Circle always dazzles at night
After the parade and carolling were over, it was back to the firehouse but not before the fire fighters got their own group shot at the Christmas tree.
The Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department at the Christmas Tree in 2021
By the end of the month, we were ready for our big community event, “Santa Around Town” where the fire department escorted Santa around the Hasbrouck Heights community to wish everyone Christmas cheer in a very difficult year.
We lucked out and the weather cooperated and it ended up being a sunny but cool day. Because of the COVID pandemic, we cut the number of stops and the crowds were a bit smaller but no less enthusiastic about seeing and talking to Santa.
Being socially distanced and wearing masks in some locations, residents of Hasbrouck Heights got to talk to Santa and give him their Christmas wishes. I have never seen so many families and especially children need a lot of Christmas cheer in these tough times and Santa really came through for families and even their pets, as many Christmas dogs greeted and licked Santa.
We toured all over town, greeting residents and every keeping as socially distanced and safe as we could as Santa greeted everyone who came and cheered up a community that really needed it.
Merry Christmas from the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department!
The Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department’s Annual “Santa Around Town” 2021
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