[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16965]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE PACE FIRE DEPARTMENT

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                            HON. JEFF MILLER

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 29, 2008

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Madam Speaker, on behalf of the United States 
Congress, it is an honor for me to rise today in recognition of the 
fiftieth anniversary of the Pace, Florida Fire Department.
  In 1959 the city of Pace had little access to emergency services. A 
small group of ten local citizens took matters into their own hands and 
heeded their community's call for help. With only two donated fire 
trucks, these ten brave men created the Pace Volunteer Fire Department 
and began responding to local emergencies. In the beginning, the 
department had no station to house firemen or fire trucks. Instead, two 
Pace households used ``fire phones'' to take emergency calls. These 
households would then phone each firefighter at home to alert them of 
the fire. With little extra funding for gear, the men often responded 
to these fires with nothing but the clothes on their backs and courage 
in their hearts.
  As the fire department gained its footing in the Pace area, the local 
community began to provide funding for a new alert system, a new fire 
station, and appropriate firefighting gear. The firefighters' wives 
founded a ladies auxiliary which helped to raise funds and to support 
their husbands. With such dedicated support from the local society, the 
fire department quickly grew to over thirty firefighters. Over the past 
fifty years, the Pace Volunteer Fire Department has expanded from one 
station and two donated fire engines to four substations and eleven 
fire trucks. Today, a group of twenty firefighters and ten associate 
members now respond to over 1,400 emergency calls each year.
  The dedicated men and women of the Pace Fire Department have 
faithfully served their community for fifty years. Each and every day 
these volunteers respond bravely to our most dangerous disasters, and 
they ask for nothing in return. Their commitment to the citizens of 
Pace and passion in fulfilling their duties distinguishes them as one 
of the best fire departments in the country.
  Madam Speaker, on behalf of the United States Congress, I am proud to 
honor the Pace Fire Department for its fifty years of courageous 
service to their community.

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