Auxiliary supports Blackville firefighters

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” - Coretta Scott King

Compassionate actions certainly describe the strength of character the Blackville Fire Department Auxiliary (BFDA) represents to this compact community in northeastern Barnwell County.

Renee Chupp, founder of the 10-member BFDA in 2022, is an EMT/First Responder on Blackville’s fire department. She’s served there for the last four years, changing out air tanks when needed, having cooling rags and water available. “Basically what the BFDA is doing now,” she said, staying up to date and in the know is vital so “the training and refresher courses never end.”

Chupp started the BFDA because “the need for people to be there for calls, like a big fire. Actually, I kinda got inspired after the big house fire at the end of Lartigue,” said Chupp, referring to a fire on Izlar and Jones Bridge Road.

“We didn’t have an auxiliary yet and things were kind of dicey, like trying to figure out who does what. How we’re getting food to these people. Firefighters and personnel who were working the scene. Police officers and everybody. Nobody really knew what to do. So, after that I decided to get a group together. Start something for when something comes up like that. Have a group of people that are able, trained, to go out and get food if needed or drinks or any kind of relief that the firefighters might need. Miss Anna Jennings from the Denmark Fire Department, she's head of the auxiliary there; she kind of helped me get my boots on the ground and get started for sure," said Chupp.

Chupp, who always wanted to be an EMT as far back as she can remember, said her “mom’s cousin was an EMT and really inspired me plus I was always interested in the medical field.” From listening to those youthful stories and working with the local fire department, Chupp was very aware that dehydration and fatigue are major concerns for members of the fire service when battling a blaze. The combination from such an extremely heated environment and protective gear insulating the firefighter can produce dangerous conditions of dehydration and other serious physical impairments which could lead to detrimental effects on a firefighter's health, safety, and performance.

“We go through insane amounts of water and Gatorade.” Chupp said. ”Any donations are extremely appreciated from the community. Team member Ann Pernell has been a Godsend. She manages the Williston Dollar General and she’s donated tremendous amounts of water, cooling rags, coolers and more to help our firefighters. We are extremely grateful for the community's help. For example, David at Russell's Pizza helps us with a really good deal to get food for the firefighters. Bobby from Subway said, ‘Call anytime if they need subs.’ It helps us by getting bulk food for those on the scene who are hungry and tired from working long hours. We're an independent volunteer organization, so we just get help wherever we can find it and any type of help is tremendously appreciated.”

Fellow BFDA member Diane Haskins, 71, was born and raised in Blackville. She said she joined because she and her husband Jamie, 73, were both EMTs. As she reflected on earlier years, she said, “We did it ourselves, paid for everything because back then, Blackville didn’t have a rescue squad located in town so there were a couple of us who got a used ambulance and we had all of our equipment in it. We stocked it with everything we needed. My husband is still a first responder.”

Chupp added, “These days the BFD has a fully-equipped rescue truck with all the tools needed for support. So usually somebody from the fire department takes that truck out to the scene.”

BFDA members, however, use their personal vehicles and everything they do for the fire department is strictly volunteer.

Kristi Keigler, whose husband is on the fire department, said, “He told me Renee was starting this and asked if I wanted to join and I did. I really like helping with the fundraisers that we do, like the Taste of Blackville and the 9-11 event.”

Renae Weaver voluntarily serves both Denmark and Blackville auxiliaries, and said she’s “married to the assistant chief, Dylan Weaver, at the BFD and he’s also a volunteer firefighter in Denmark.” Since she’s a mother of three boys and expecting another child, she works more behind the scenes with fundraisers and supplies. The BFDA bylaws state that no children are allowed on the scene.

“I’m really happy with our team. We have a lot of fun together and we work well together,” said Chupp. “A lot of times Preacher Ken (Frederick) has done running for us and that’s incredibly helpful. He’ll go out and get ice or water, drinks, food, or whatever we need. His wife, Suzanne, is also part of the auxiliary and she is extremely helpful in the fundraiser area.” The Fredericks’ youngest son, Samuel, 22, is also a volunteer firefighter for Blackville and Dorchester County. Sam's wife, Ashleigh, is on the Blackville Fire Department Auxiliary.

The BFDA responds to alarms anytime of the day or night, providing firefighters with whatever supplies or assistance they may need. “Chante Washington and Stacy, both EMRs, and I are first responders. We’re usually on the scene and can manage but we don’t usually leave the scene and that’s when we call on other auxiliary members to assist,” Chupp said. “But when it comes to fundraisers and special events, we all work together. A lot of the fundraisers are for supplies, like purchasing drinks, cooling rags, coolers, etc. for the betterment of the firefighters. The Denmark auxiliary donated a lot to help us get started with our first fundraiser.”

The Taste of Blackville and 9-11 fundraisers will be annual events for the auxiliary that the community can look forward to.

“The 9-11 fundraising event at the First Baptist Church in Blackville,” said Pastor Ken, “was our first and we were coming off COVID, but we had somebody at church say, ‘I didn’t realize this was going to be such a big deal.’ And that was our first year, so next year it’s going to be even bigger. We encourage people to support that and recognize its significance and to know,” he laughingly said, “they’re going to get the best chicken anywhere around! The chicken was delicious!”

Chupp agreed and said, “We're super grateful for the community showing up. We did really well from their support, and they were gracious with us as we were still working out kinks as we learned from our first events. September 9, 2023 will be our next 9-11 event and we’re already looking forward to that.”