[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 49 (Friday, March 18, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E282]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING THE PLATTSBURGH DISTRICT NO. 3 VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT ON 
                 THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF ITS FOUNDING.

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ELISE M. STEFANIK

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, March 18, 2022

  Ms. STEFANIK. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor and celebrate the 
Plattsburgh District No. 3 Fire Department on the 50th anniversary of 
its founding. This fire department has shown tremendous dedication to 
protecting and serving the city of Plattsburgh and the surrounding 
municipalities in Clinton County.
  The District No. 3 Fire Department was first authorized in a 
resolution passed by the Town Board of Plattsburgh on July 1, 1971 and 
was formally chartered two months later. Under the leadership of their 
first Chief, Ken Dumas, the twenty-five original firefighters of 
District No. 3 steadily began to establish themselves within the 
Plattsburgh community. Shortly after the Department's creation, local 
resident Kathryn Grube generously donated her private land on Wallace 
Hill Road to serve as their first permanent fire station. Despite many 
updates and renovations, the Wallace Hill Station is still the main 
home of District No. 3.
  As the years went on, the Department continued to emerge from its 
humble beginnings, gaining more experience and acquiring better 
equipment. In 1972, they purchased two one-thousand gallon per minute 
fire pumps, and they were officially integrated into the Clinton County 
Firemen's Association the following year. In 1983, they acquired a Mack 
Aerialscope fire engine from the City of New York and were further 
enhanced by a consistent flow of community donations.
  Today, the District No. 3 Fire Department has expanded to over forty 
volunteer members who are extraordinary examples of those willing to 
sacrifice for the good of their community. Now utilizing an impressive 
fleet of five modern engines, the District No. 3 Fire Department 
responds to over one hundred calls annually. On April 9, 2022, the 
Department will celebrate its seven remaining founding members: Dennis 
Burnell, Wendell Burnell, George Giroux, Marcel Giroux, Gary Gudz, 
Edward Goslow, and Roger Harwood. On behalf of New York's 21st 
Congressional District, I am honored to recognize the 50th anniversary 
of Plattsburgh's No. 3 Fire Department.

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