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Fire
trucks on parade
Firefighters provide escort to camp for burn victims
BY NICK G. MAHERAS
ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
RANDLEMAN – Almost two
years ago, a gas can exploded, burning Dylan Howard’s chest, legs and arms.
Now 14, the Western Alamance
Middle School student will never forget that day – Nov. 8, 2003.
On Sunday, though, sitting in the
front seat of a High Point Fire Department truck, his mind was far
from the pain of the past. He was ready to ride to camp in a procession of
fire engines from around the Triad and the state.
Their destination – nearby Victory
Junction Gang Camp, where Camp
Celebrate, the first camp in the United States
for children with burn injuries, will be held.
Camp Celebrate
observes its 25th year of operation this year. It’s the second year
the fire engines have gathered to carry the kids to camp.
Howard rode on one last year, too. He
looked forward to the ride and the camp.
“It was fun,” he said with a grin. “I
just like riding with the sirens on and everything.” Brittany Craig,
15, of Washington, said an accidental collision with her mother resulted
in her being scalded when she was 4 years old.
She wouldn’t miss the camp or the
parade.
“I’ve been here every year,”
she said. “I like it a lot. Next year, I’ll be a counselor out here (at the
camp).
“The people here are just so nice.
That’s why I wanted to be a counselor – to help people who got burned
like me.” Krystal Knight, 14, of Carthage, suffered third-degree burns on
her leg and side when she was 2 years old.
“I’ve been going ever since I was 6 to
Camp Celebrate and now Victory Junction Gang,” Knight said. “Everybody
here doesn’t treat you like an outsider. To see other people (with burns),
that I’m not alone, it kind of makes me feel better.” The fire engine
procession also gives firefighters a big morale boost, according to Brian
Causey, assistant Randleman Fire Chief.
“It’s great for them,” he said. “We know we’ve not failed in our job.
Something good’s come out of it.
“They’re grateful that they came and
got to talk to these kids. It’s a way for these kids to know somebody
still cares, and there’s not a problem with what’s happened to them.”
nmaheras@hpe.com |888-3534
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