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IMPORTANT!!! Mark your Calendar

The GCFFA mourns the loss of a brother in a LODD in Wharton County on July 3, 2010. Thomas Araquz III, 33, died while fighting a fire Saturday night here in Wharton County. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Funeral Arrangements for Wharton Volunteer Captain Thomas Araguz III are as follows: rose

Public visitation will be Saturday, July 10 at the Wharton Funeral Home located at 515 E. Boling Hwy in Wharton, Texas from 1 to 6 p.m.

The funeral will be on Sunday, July 11 at 2:00 at the Wharton Civic Center located at 1924 N. Fulton, Wharton, Texas

Due to limited parking for Sunday, public parking will be at the Wharton High School located at 800 E. Ahldag. Buses will transport those attending beginning at 12:30 pm. and immediately after the services.

Graveside services will follow at Evergreen Memorial Park located at 3511 E. Alabama Road (CR166) Wharton, Texas

For those who would like to pay tribute to Captain Thomas Araguz III, the funeral procession will follow from the Wharton Civic Center, south on Fulton St, West on Boling Hwy. , south on North Richmond Road, East on Alabama St., passing the Wharton Fire Station, then north on Alabama Road ending at Evergreen Memorial Park.

Public needing information should call 979-532-4811, ext. 400

Fire Department personnel needing information should call 281-802-4561

An account has been established at the First State Bank of Louise located at 505 E. Boling Hwy. Wharton, Texas 77488 or they may be contacted at 979532-0404. All checks should be made payable to "The Thomas Araguz III Memorial Fund"

CONGRATULATIONS

RUSTY KATTNER!!!

Rusty was elected by his peers at the 134th SFFMA Convention in Corpus Christi, as our 4th Vice President! This is an exciting position as he continues to support the Fire Service at the State level. We are very proud of Rusty and will support his efforts over the next 5 years while he moves up the ranks.

Message from the President

Welcome to the Galveston County Firefighter’s Association (GCFFA) web page. We hope you take a moment to look around and learn about this great organization. I want to point out some interesting facts.

The GCFFA was originally formed as the Galveston Firemen’s Association in the late 1940’s. The intent was to open a line of communication and partnership between departments within Galveston County. Today we represent 17 fire departments across the county. In addition we have numerous associate members which include local industry, fire service vendors, educational institutes and departments from other neighboring counties.

The GCFFA through a contractual agreement with Galveston County, distribute over $405,000.00 annually to county fire departments. This funding is intended to support these departments and allow for the Capital purchases, operating expenses and training. The County Commissioner’s support every local fire department regardless of their status as volunteer or paid. In return, these departments provide mutual aid across the county whenever needed.

Our executive board is comprised of 10 members. Six are elected to staggered two year terms. Four are appointed by the elected executive board members. In addition, the executive board elects a President and Vice President annually. One of the elected positions is a Training Commissioner. With the assistance of the Training Committee, this commissioner sets a training schedule for each year. GCFFA in conjunction with College of The Mainland provide a variety of first rate firefighter training. This training is free to county departments and is almost always open to outside organizations.

The GCFFA, through our members is active in every form of government including county, state and federal. We have representation on several boards and organizations designed to enhance the fire service. This representation has allowed us to bring the latest information into the county and assist our departments in advancing their personnel and services.

GCFFA meets once a month. The meetings move from department to department each month. We regularly meet on the first Thursday of the month at 7pm. The hosting department typically provides a meal to all those in attendance. We welcome political candidates and while we do not endorse, we do provide a great forum to ultimately reach hundreds of constituents. If you are interested in joining as an Associate member, please go to the Associate member tab for more information.

We are glad you visited our web site and hope to see you at a meeting soon. Please support your local fire departments and public safety personnel wherever you are.

Yours in Fire Safety

Michael W. Wisko
President

Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM), formerly referred to as the Mitchell Model, is a crisis intervention program developed for emergency responders, containing multiple interventions, which was developed by the founders of the International Critical Incident Stress Management Foundation (ICISF).

Galveston County Firefighters Association P.O. Box 549 LaMarque, TX 77568


CHECK YOUR TRAINING CALENDAR
GCFFA 2010 Meetings ◊ July San Leon VFD ◊ August Bacliff VFD ◊ September Kemah FD ◊ October Marathon FD ◊ November Forest Bend FD ◊ December Bayou Vista VFD ◊ Pat Barrett Scholarship Fund In lieu of flowers, the family requests that gifts be made to the Pat Barrett Scholarship Fund at the Texas A&M Foundation. This scholarship will benefit students of the Brayton Fire Training Field. Checks should be made payable to the Texas A&M Foundation and mailed to 401 George Bush Drive, College Station, Texas 77840-2811.	IMPORTANT!!! Mark your Calendar The GCFFA mourns the loss of a brother in a LODD in Wharton County on July 3, 2010. Thomas Araquz III, 33, died while fighting a fire Saturday night here in Wharton County. He is survived by his wife and two children. Funeral Arrangements for Wharton Volunteer Captain Thomas Araguz III are as follows: Public visitation will be Saturday, July 10 at the Wharton Funeral Home located at 515 E. Boling Hwy in Wharton, Texas from 1 to 6 p.m. The funeral will be on Sunday, July 11 at 2:00 at the Wharton Civic Center located at 1924 N. Fulton, Wharton, Texas Due to limited parking for Sunday, public parking will be at the Wharton High School located at 800 E. Ahldag. Buses will transport those attending beginning at 12:30 pm. and immediately after the services. Graveside services will follow at Evergreen Memorial Park located at 3511 E. Alabama Road (CR166) Wharton, Texas For those who would like to pay tribute to Captain Thomas Araguz III, the funeral procession will follow from the Wharton Civic Center, south on Fulton St, West on Boling Hwy. , south on North Richmond Road, East on Alabama St., passing the Wharton Fire Station, then north on Alabama Road ending at Evergreen Memorial Park. Public needing information should call 979-532-4811, ext. 400 Fire Department personnel needing information should call 281-802-4561 An account has been established at the First State Bank of Louise located at 505 E. Boling Hwy. Wharton, Texas 77488 or they may be contacted at 979532-0404. All checks should be made payable to "The Thomas Araguz III Memorial Fund" CONGRATULATIONS RUSTY KATTNER!!! Rusty was elected by his peers at the 134th SFFMA Convention in Corpus Christi, as our 4th Vice President! This is an exciting position as he continues to support the Fire Service at the State level. We are very proud of Rusty and will support his efforts over the next 5 years while he moves up the ranks. Message from the President Welcome to the Galveston County Firefighter’s Association (GCFFA) web page. We hope you take a moment to look around and learn about this great organization. I want to point out some interesting facts. The GCFFA was originally formed as the Galveston Firemen’s Association in the late 1940’s. The intent was to open a line of communication and partnership between departments within Galveston County. Today we represent 17 fire departments across the county. In addition we have numerous associate members which include local industry, fire service vendors, educational institutes and departments from other neighboring counties. The GCFFA through a contractual agreement with Galveston County, distribute over $405,000.00 annually to county fire departments. This funding is intended to support these departments and allow for the Capital purchases, operating expenses and training. The County Commissioner’s support every local fire department regardless of their status as volunteer or paid. In return, these departments provide mutual aid across the county whenever needed. Our executive board is comprised of 10 members. Six are elected to staggered two year terms. Four are appointed by the elected executive board members. In addition, the executive board elects a President and Vice President annually. One of the elected positions is a Training Commissioner. With the assistance of the Training Committee, this commissioner sets a training schedule for each year. GCFFA in conjunction with College of The Mainland provide a variety of first rate firefighter training. This training is free to county departments and is almost always open to outside organizations. The GCFFA, through our members is active in every form of government including county, state and federal. We have representation on several boards and organizations designed to enhance the fire service. This representation has allowed us to bring the latest information into the county and assist our departments in advancing their personnel and services. GCFFA meets once a month. The meetings move from department to department each month. We regularly meet on the first Thursday of the month at 7pm. The hosting department typically provides a meal to all those in attendance. We welcome political candidates and while we do not endorse, we do provide a great forum to ultimately reach hundreds of constituents. If you are interested in joining as an Associate member, please go to the Associate member tab for more information. We are glad you visited our web site and hope to see you at a meeting soon. Please support your local fire departments and public safety personnel wherever you are. Yours in Fire Safety Michael W. Wisko President Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM), formerly referred to as the Mitchell Model, is a crisis intervention program developed for emergency responders, containing multiple interventions, which was developed by the founders of the International Critical Incident Stress Management Foundation (ICISF). CISM is not psychotherapy: rather, it is a program that teaches first responders to get thru the traumatic event. CISM is all about helping healthy first responders remain healthy and functioning after a traumatic event. CISM is provided by trained first responders for first responders. CISM is FREE and CONFIDENTIAL Some of the events that may be considered traumatic for first responders: Serious line of duty injury Line of duty death Suicide of a colleague Events involving high levels of media coverage Events involving children Prolonged events (example, IKE's aftermath) Events in which errors have occurred Events in which an injustice may have occurred (example, child abuse case) It's never too late for CISM, but the sooner the intervention occurs the better the outcome. If you have any question about CISM or think you may need an intervention for yourself, your partner, or your team/force/group please call: Tom Dendy, Team Coordinator, (409)925-2900 (daytime) or (409)599-9696 (cell) OR Annette H. Martinez, Clinical Coordinator, (409)996-3131	UPDATED!! 06-21-10 General Calendar Welcome to our newest addition to the GCFFA! Kennedy Rae Sumrall born June 2, 2010 7lbs 13 oz. Congratulations to Joel and Angie Sumrall
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