On Thursday, February 26, San Jose Fire Department held a ceremony to honor the department's 155th Anniversary. Begun in 1854, the San Jose Fire Department is believed to be the second oldest paid fire department in the nation. San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed was on hand with other dignitaries to present a City declaration to SJFD Chief Darryl Von Raesfeld.
Fire Associate members were also at the event with an exhibit that showed the 40-year history of our organization. Titled "40 Years of Service to the San Jose Fire Department", the exhibit had a then-to-now theme. Ed Del Prete offered his original FASCV helmet do be displayed alongside today's helmet. Also on display were San Jose Mercury-News news articles from the 1970's describing the group's early days of operation. Spread out around the 8-foot table were photographs of FASCV Rehab operations from the late 1980's until the present. Located on easels behind the display were color enlargements of the FASCV brochure.
Highlight of the FASCV exhibit was our new Support Unit 2. At the request of Batt. Chief Kevin Conant, our rig was prominently parked next to the B1 Command Vehicle directly in front of the station. It received a lot of admiring attention throughout the morning.
John Whitaker's photos of the event can be viewed at: SJFD's 155th Anniversary
John Whitaker's photos of the event can be viewed at: SJFD's 155th Anniversary
