The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 154, No. 29, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 7, 2007 Page: 3 of 16
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CYAN magenta
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u Thursday, June 7, 2007
HEhe Bastrop Udocrnscr ★ Page 3A
B1 uebonnet a strong partnership
Community auction and
barbecue gives residents a
chance to appreciate VFD
By Terry Hagerty
Staff Writer
It was Texas hot — early
June and in the nud 90s.
But not hot enough to
bypass some excellent brisket
and the fixins" at last Sunday's
Bluebonnet Volunteer Fire
Dept. annual barbecue and
auction in Cedar Creek.
Fire Chief Buddy Burrows
wiped his brow and said, ""I've
been doing all the cooking,"
then re-thought his statement
and added, "Well, you can't do
all of it by yourself."
When asked if he was a
good cook, Burrows replied
modestly, "Well, I think I am."
The substantial crowd —
many of whom lined up to buy
extra brisket after completion
of the auction and lunch —
was ample evidence that the
firehouse crew knew how
smoke some brisket.
And the auction was fun
too, led by veteran auctioneer
Mike Hilbig, who was assisted
by youngsters who paraded
around auction items during
the bidding.
We do everything together
here — we're family,"
Burrows said, "And it's been
like this since we formed in
1968."
The department became
part of an Emergency Services
District about three years ago
and has two dozen volunteer
and two paid staff members.
Doug Mailen, who's been
with the fire department 17
years, including a stint as
board president, concurred:
"We're a very tight knit group.
It's a second family kind of
thing here. Once in, you are in
for life."
Before Bluebonnet joined
the ESD, volunteers would
raise as much as $12,000-
$13,000 at a single fundraiser,
Mailen said.
"Now, the (taxes from)
ESD fund about 99 percent of
our department," Mailen said.
Burrows agreed being part
of the ESD has been a boon.
"The formation of an ESD
has been an excellent move for
us," Burrows said. "We've
gotten new equipment we
couldn't afford before." He
pointed at a shiny red 1,250
gallon-per-minute pumper
truck and several brash trucks
parked next to the station.
Volunteer firefighter Rick
Davis joined the department
about 8 months ago.
"We wanted to give back to
the community,* said Davis,
who is a partially disabled
Army veteran, but still gets out
to fires. After surveying the
strong community turnout for
Sunday's auction, Davis
added, "It's pretty heartfelt to
know you're appreciated
around here."
%
*
Some of the mem-
bers of the
Bluebonnet
Volunteer Fire
Dept. (clockwise
from top), includ-
ing Bill Gunnell in
foreground holding
packaged brisket,
gather after last
Sunday's annual
auction and barbe-
cue at their Cedar
Creek station;
Anastacia Patino
waves a flag;
Brandon Whatley,
10, helps out dur-
ing the auction.
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M
BASTROP
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June 16
8 a m - 7 pm
Come register
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McAuley, Davis. The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 154, No. 29, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 7, 2007, newspaper, June 7, 2007; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth252379/m1/3/?rotate=270: accessed May 4, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Bastrop Public Library.