New ways to support firefighters

McMinnville’s firefighters union is expanding fundraising efforts through a new charity, and a separate program has been started to provide snacks and supplies for wildfire deployments.

MFD firefighter Kody Quinlan and his wife Katie recently launched an effort to provide items such as deodorant, toothbrushes and snacks for teams sent out on wildfire conflagrations. The pair was inspired by a friend who established a similar program for the Keizer Fire District.

“There’s a need here that we could try to do the same type of program,” Quinlan told the News-Register. “Sometimes they can go 24-48 hours of having nothing set up as far as infrastructure on these (deployments).”

MFD has sent firefighters to nine wildfire conflagrations this summer, a new high for the district.

The firefighting community collected tuna packets, granola bars and other “simple, nonperishable snack items” with two days’ notice before the most recent deployment.

Quinlan said he was “pretty overwhelmed” by the turnout.

“We’ve been able to fill that cabinet to the brim in a week,” he said.

The program will likely go into hibernation over the winter, then continue to collect items as next year’s wildfire season approaches, Quinlan said.

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 3099 has always partnered with the McMinnville Volunteer Firefighters Association on efforts supporting Yamhill County causes and annually participates in the Fill the Boot collection for the nationwide Muscular Dystrophy Association.

“Fill the boot is the only non-local fundraiser we do, and we do that in conjunction with firefighters all across the country,” Local 3099 President Todd Godfrey told the News-Register. “Other than that, we have a self-imposed goal of keeping our funds within the county.”

The union is unveiling a new charity that will expand its local efforts and allow it to better assist community members and firefighter families. The McMinnville Firefighters Community Fund will be an all-encompassing charity benefiting a variety of causes, Godfrey said.

“Locally, what we wanted to do was kind of get everything under one umbrella,” he said. “It is intentionally named broadly so the funds can be used for really anything the community or our members may need.”

Currently, the union relies on member donations to fund its efforts, which can include helping members of the firefighting community with medical or other bills or assisting residents with things like a new wheelchair ramp, Godfrey said.

“Little things, but things around the community that we’re seeing when we’re out on our calls,” he said. “The intent isn’t, ‘Hey, give the union money.’ The intent is, ‘We’re going to give this to other places.’”

The fund will receive an early injection of money from the union’s annual softball tournament on Sept. 13 at Joe Dancer Park.

The all-day event will take place on four fields and typically attracts eight to 12 teams of area firefighters, Godfrey said. In the past, teams from Portland and the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s office have participated. This year will include a team from Hillsboro, according to Godfrey.

“It’s just an all-day fun event,” he said.

The union is also planning a poker tournament in early 2027 and is considering hosting a pickleball tournament as additional ways to raise funds, Godfrey said.