The weather wasn't so kind to me this weekend. I guess I spoke to soon last post. It was raining when I left home, early Saturday morning to catch another flight to the North Island and was raining when I got to my destination, Palmerston North, to head to the Otaki Volunteer Fire Station in the Arapawa Fire Region. Otaki is in the Kapiti Coast District and is half way between Wellington and Palmerston North. Angela Weir, 23years, is representing Otaki, has the rank of Senior Fire Fighter and has been with the Brigade there for 8 months. She joined the Fire Service in Rahotu, with her Dad when she was 17, giving her 5 years of service. It had taken her a year to convince her father she was serious about joining. It made her more determined to join when she kept getting told she wouldn't be able to do it, being a girl. She used to leave school classes to attend fire calls. Ange works at the Comm Centre in Wellington, taking the 111 calls and dispatching the Fire Brigades to the call destinations. She travels back to Otaki when not working shifts to attend calls when the siren goes up. She prefers to travel to her job so she can still be a volunteer. Ange has lost a good friend through Breast cancer, leaving behind a young family. She is passionate about helping any cause for cancer as her Nana is currently battling bowel cancer. She joins in the Walk for Life each year to help support the cause. Ange's sister Stacey came along to help with hair and makeup and making sure she smiled properly for the photos.
It is great to see the passion and devotion from each of the Female Fighters that are representing their Stations and Fire Regions and hope it inspires more females to join the Brigades in their districts. The support from the guys in the Brigades is easily noticed with the help they have been putting in to get this calendar together. It really is like having a second family.
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