The Fair Oaks Volunteer Fire Department will hold a family-friendly event July 24 from 1 to 4 p.m. to celebrate 100 years of service.

The event will be held at the station, 190 Ambridge Ave. in Leet, and will feature a dunk tank, bounce house, fire truck rides, fire prevention activities and Kona Ice.

“This is definitely a big thing. Not many fire departments make it this far,” said fire chief Nathan Turner.

Turner said the 100th anniversary was last year, but covid delayed the station from being able to have a proper celebration.

During the pandemic, Turner said an auxiliary club came together to help with fundraising and non-firefighter activities. The club will hold this year’s celebration for the fire department through money raised from raffles held during the past six months.

Steph Turner, president of the auxiliary club, said $15,000 was raised through raffle fundraising, but the amount fluctuates because multiple raffles are held each week. The club started fundraising in November last year and more than $5,000 was donated to the fire department for firefighter equipment, awards and other items the department needed.

“It’s going to be really nice for the community to get together,” Steph Turner said. “Lots of people stepped up with things for the event.”

The department currently has 20 firefighters, four active life members and six retired life members, according to Nathan Turner.

“We’ve seen an influx of firefighters in the last year,” he said.

Chuck Soman, who has been a life member for 48 years at the department, said the fire station has evolved over the years since its incorporation in 1920, especially with calls. Soman said at its inception, the station would receive 25 calls a year, now it receives about 200.

“Back then, there weren’t many fires, now even the types of calls have changed,” he said.

The station has also seen a slight increase of female firefighters over the last 10 years with two currently involved, according to Nathan Turner.

“In the past, fire service was always only seen for men,” Nathan Turner said.

When it comes to serving the community, the fire department has also gone beyond putting out fires. Nathan Turner remembered a time when the department helped a neighbor fix a house.

“We’re here to help people,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what that help looks like.”

Mitch Soman, president of the department, said being a firefighter is the best way to give back. “If people want to give back to their community, this job is the most rewarding way to do so.”

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