HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 889 Offered February 9, 2007 Commending the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. ---------- Patron-- Lewis ----------

WHEREAS, in 2007, the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company celebrates 50 years of outstanding service to the community of Atlantic in Accomack County and the surrounding area; and

WHEREAS, the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company was founded on March 8, 1957, at a community meeting held at the Baptist church where residents discussed the need for a firefighting crew in Atlantic; and

WHEREAS, the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company started out with two used fire trucks housed in a temporary location, and today the company has six modern firefighting vehicles, including a new brush fire unit and a new rescue unit, and the station has been enlarged several times over the years; and

WHEREAS, the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company proudly serves 1,500 people living in a 26-square-mile area and functions as a second call company backing up five other volunteer fire departments in the area and assisting NASA and U.S. Navy facilities at Wallops Island, Virginia, if needed; and

WHEREAS, the volunteer firefighters of the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company regularly participate in training courses to update their knowledge and skills in order to provide the community with the best possible fire and rescue services; and

WHEREAS, twelve of the original 46 charter members of the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company are still living today, and they are William T. McCready, Jr., Richard Kinnard, Elmer Thomas, John W. Revell, Emmett G. Taylor, William H. Watson, Glenn Fisher, Herman E. Chesser, Louis Wright, L. Woody Fisher, Kenneth Miles, and Richard Thornton; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company on the occasion of its 50th anniversary; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare copies of this resolution for presentation to the Atlantic Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company and the living charter members mentioned above as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for their many years of outstanding service to the citizens of Atlantic and Accomack County.