October sunshine draws hundreds to events in town

Islanders started the day at Vashon Island Fire Rescue’s open house, then made their way to Ciderfest.

By Elizabeth Shepherd • October 11, 2023 1:30 am
At Vashon Island Fire & Rescue’s open house on Saturday (top left) Madeline, who might grow up to be a firefighter, perched in the driver’s seat of VIFR’s ladder engine. Inside the station, (middle row, top to bottom) the Yates family, flanked by Fire Chief Matt Vinci and Division Chief Ben Davidson, at the Sam Yates Community Foundation booth; James Freund and a crew of other Rotarians served up pancakes; and mascot Sparky the Fire Dog meet a real-life hero from Vashon Guide Dogs. (Right row, top to bottom) VashonBePrepared, Vinci admires the artwork of a young attendee, and Commissioner Bridget Shran Brown stands in from of VIFR’s new Mobile Integrated Health aid car (Elizabeth Shepherd Photos).
At Vashon Island Fire & Rescue’s open house on Saturday (top left) Madeline, who might grow up to be a firefighter, perched in the driver’s seat of VIFR’s ladder engine. Inside the station, (middle row, top to bottom) the Yates family, flanked by Fire Chief Matt Vinci and Division Chief Ben Davidson, at the Sam Yates Community Foundation booth; James Freund and a crew of other Rotarians served up pancakes; and mascot Sparky the Fire Dog meet a real-life hero from Vashon Guide Dogs. (Right row, top to bottom) VashonBePrepared, Vinci admires the artwork of a young attendee, and Commissioner Bridget Shran Brown stands in from of VIFR’s new Mobile Integrated Health aid car (Elizabeth Shepherd Photos).

Last Saturday, hundreds of islanders started the blue-sky day at Vashon Island Fire & Rescue’s open house and then made their way to Ciderfest, at Vashon Village.

Ciderfest, presented by the Vashon Island Chamber of Commerce, featured all of the time-honored enticements of the annual fall event — cider tastings, apple pressing, food vendors, exhibits and treats for all ages.

The fire district’s open house, at Station 55 on Bank Road, was also a family-friendly hit.

As a kick-off to Fire Prevention Week, the event included a pancake breakfast served up by members of Vashon Rotary, complete with all the fixings and gallons of hot coffee for the grown-ups.

Kids clamored into VIFR’s ladder engine parked outside the station, and then grabbed bright red balloons and headed to a fire station-themed bouncy castle. Emerald City Pet Rescue provided a petting station with Templeton, the pig — another kid-pleaser.

The open house also featured kitchen safety demonstrations by firefighters and CPR demonstrations.

A booth staffed by the Sam Yates Community Foundation provided information on the use of publicly accessible Automated External Defibrillators — life-saving devices to be used on those who suffer from sudden cardiac arrest (see “Happenings” for the latest news from the foundation).

VashonBePrepared’s booth featured Bree, the Community Emergency Response Team’s (CERT) new search and rescue dog — a friendly black Malinois accompanied by CERT member Milt Williams, his trainer.

At the event, the fire district unveiled its shiny new aid car to be used in its new, Mobile Integrated Health (MIH) program.

The MIH program — funded by the already-existing King County’s EMS Levy — will enable VIFR to provide additional resources, including home visits, for high-need patients on Vashon.

Fire Commissioner Brigitte Shran Brown said she was excited about VIFR’s participation in MIH — something it had long been eligible to do. Home visits to Vashon patients with chronic illnesses including diabetes and heart disease will take stress off of the island’s 911 system, she said, saving the district time-consuming and expensive transports to hospitals for routine care and regular check-ins.

In 2023, VIFR received $164,000 in revenue from joining the MIH program, reflecting retroactive payments that it could have claimed from MIH for the past four years. The new aid car was purchased with some of those funds, said Fire Chief Matt Vinci.