Honorary Fire Chief Owen McGonigal surrounded by London Fire Fighters
On June 2nd, a group of 40 London Fire Fighters were standing in full gear outside the Covent Garden Market ready to climb to the balcony level; they were answering a call from Muscular Dystrophy Canada. The Fire Fighters had challenged themselves to climbing up a ladder, 8m at a time, until they had climbed the equivalent of Mount Everest, which is 8850m high.
The London Fire Fighters are always looking for new and unique ways to bring attention to muscular dystrophy, whether organizing a Rooftop Campout during St. Patrick’s Day weekend or taking the Mt. Everest Climb challenge, these guys are always happy to pitch in.
The Mt. Everest Climb was adapted from another charity event, and was originally intended to be just for new recruit climbers. New recruits wear yellow helmets and are Fire Fighters in training, meaning they are not yet working on the fire trucks, but the training crew and veteran Fire Fighters wanted to introduce the recruits to another important aspect of fire fighting: community service.
The London Fire Fighters are so dedicated to their community service and supporting Muscular Dystrophy Canada that the event was opened up to the whole crew, and about 40 men and women ranging from recruits, captain, trainers and a deputy chief came out to climb.
Tom Nicholson, a 20 year Fire Fighter who coordinated the climb and helps plan the Rooftop Campout and many other events, explained that it’s easy to get participants, “It’s actually a lot of fun and all the volunteers are happy to be here. It’s just sending out a few emails and you know you’ll have volunteers for the events.”
Donations were collected throughout the morning climb, and Muscular Dystrophy Canada spokesperson Owen McGonigal took the time to come visit and cheer on his Fire Fighter friends. And there’s a lot to cheer. London Fire Fighters were honoured four times this year by Muscular Dystrophy Canada for their endless efforts to raise funds and awareness in innovative ways. London Fire Department has been announced both National and Ontario Fire Department of the Year, Greg Knight from London is the Ontario Fire Fighter of the Year and Tom Nicholson won an Extra Mile Award at the Ontario Conference in February.
Tom said there’s a lot more to come from London Fire Fighters. He and other community service leaders in the unit are constantly planning for the next event and new ways to garner attention and funds for Muscular Dystrophy Canada.
