To the Editor:

I would like to extend a very strong and heartfelt thank-you to the Altamont Fire Department for coming to my aid on Aug. 4.  These great local volunteers came with their beautiful shiny red trucks with their long, long hoses and pumped out gallons and gallons of water from my basement after a sudden and fierce summer storm dumped its pent-up contents on me and my neighbors.

It was such a relief to see those trucks pull up to my curb mere minutes after the siren went off. Such a delight to see those men and women jump out, each and every one of them, and take stock of the situation and work as a team to get the job done.

After an hour and a half or so, their work was complete.

I will never forget that day and how these local heroes took time from their busy day to come help me out. They all were super in every way and I have incredible respect for each and every one of them.

I know they train hard, spend long hours sometimes at fires and floods and disasters and yet they keep coming back, ready to share with all of us their expertise, their courage, their smarts, their neighborliness, their patience, and their understanding of how those they help must feel.

These volunteers, in my opinion, embody what it means to be part of a community. I am so lucky I got to know some of them, if just for a little while. Thank you, Altamont fire department! You are the best!  And I love your shiny red trucks!

Betty Head

Altamont