KINGSTON - The Kingston Volunteer Fire Department held its fifth annual St. Patrick's Day Dinner at 6 p.m. at the Kingston Community Hall on March 16 and broke a record by selling 130 dinners, said Assistant Fire Chief Bradley Ward. St. Patrick's Day fell on March 17.
The event, which included dinner, bingo, raffles and an auction, raised more than $4,800 for the fire department and drew more than 150 people.
"With most of our veteran auxiliary members attending an out-of-state event this year, our new members and members of the community truly stepped up to make this an outstanding event and a good time for all," Ward said.
The firefighters and auxiliary members served up corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, homemade dinner rolls, desserts, beer, wine, soda, special St. Patrick's Day drinks and Jell-O shots.
The cost was $10 per plate with a half price discount for active duty military, police, fire and EMS personnel. Children age 7 and under ate free. The dinner included a free soda or water but alcoholic drinks were sold separately.
There was bingo at $5 per card with a blackout round won by Tom Launsbury, who was awarded $100, up from $50 in previous years. Bingo sold out of all 100 cards and when some people left, others bought their cards, Ward said.
There were two gun raffles. One was for a camouflage Savage Axis 25-06 rifle with a Bushnell 3x9 scope, valued at more than $500, won by Chris Center, of Kingston, and the other, a Taurus PT-809 Stainless-Black 9mm pistol with case cleaning gear, a gun lock and two magazines, valued at more than $550, was won by Patsy Waits, of Austin.
In addition to the gun raffles, there was also a general raffle and a live auction. Raffle and bingo prizes included outdoor items, gift certificates, wine packages and knife sets. Most of the items were donated by businesses and individuals in the central Nevada area and a few were purchased by the fire department.
The auction included items such as Ward's hair (he cut off his hair and donated it to the event), metal art, organic ground beef, a firefighter themed birthday party for up to 20 children, hosted by the fire department, and a day with a local outfitter. The auction items were all donated by businesses and individuals around central Nevada.
Last year, around 130 people attended the event which raised $3,800 for the fire department. The event was originally created by former Fire Chief Guy Rock.
"It's a fun event and an essential funding source to operate and maintain our fire equipment," said Ward.
Lander County EMS also had a booth at the event and handed out free File of Life Kits. People complete the File of Life Kits with any pertinent medical conditions and/or medications and typically place the magnetic kit on a fridge for EMS personnel to easily locate when responding to a medical emergency.
The Kingston Volunteer Fire Department was given $2,000 from Battle Mountain General Hospital, making the hospital the department's first corporate sponsor. Hospital CEO Phil Hanna showed up at the St. Patrick's Day event to present the check to Fire Chief Jerry Simoni.
"We are thrilled that Battle Mountain General Hospital opted to be a corporate sponsor and hope to announce additional sponsors later in the year," said Ward.
The St. Patrick's Day event is one of two annual fundraisers conducted by the department. The other event, the department's annual picnic, will be held Aug. 3. People interested in donating to that event can contact Ward at (775) 964-1034.
In other funding, the town of Kingston board gave the fire department $13,500 out of the town's FY 2013-14 budget. Ward said the fire department had requested $18,500, a major portion of which is required to pay for mandatory maintenance and service of the department's engines and water tender. Last year, the department was given $8,000. Kingston's budget workshop was held March 25.
The Austin St. Patrick's Day event was held March 23 so as not to conflict with other area events. It had originally been scheduled for March 16. Ward said he was appreciative of the Austin event organizers for moving the date of their event.
"It allowed us to see some new faces at our event and for our firefighters and auxiliary members to attend the Austin event," Ward said.
The Austin Schools junior class held a Mexican dinner at the school at 4 p.m. with bingo, hosted by Close-Up, following the dinner at 5 p.m. The junior class dinner was held to raise money for their senior class trip. They served up enchiladas, tacos, refried beans, chips, salsa, dessert, punch, water and coffee. The cost was $10 for adults and $7 for children.
Around 40 people attended the dinner and the bingo, said Dee Helming, Close-Up adviser.
"I think both events were very successful," said Helming. "We had a good turnout. A good time was had by all."
The bingo lasted until around 8:30 p.m. Bingo prizes were donated by businesses and individuals from Austin, Fallon, Round Mountain, Battle Mountain and Reno.
Prizes included golf passes for the Round Mountain Gold Golf Course, other Round Mountain swag, a handmade wooden bowl inlaid with turquoise, gas certificates, three oil changes, food vouchers, a car wash coupon book, local jewelry, two 25-pound meat bundles, Wal-Mart gift cards, a Battle Mountain Bugle subscription, a Nevada Rancher subscription, a Nevada Magazine subscription and other miscellaneous items.
It was not known at press time how much money was raised from the dinner and the bingo.
Close-Up is a club trying to raise money for juniors and seniors to travel to Washington, D.C., and New York in April of next year.
The trip is held every two years and next year there will be four kids going, said Helming. Five kids went on the last trip.
"The Close-Up program is a really great program and teaches the kids about their government and they get to go to Washington, D.C., and New York and see a whole different side of life," she said.
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