LCRA awards $13,448 grant to Sheffield VFD

Firefighters will add new garage to protect emergency vehicles, create fitness training area

May 4, 2023

PECOS COUNTY, Texas – The Sheffield Volunteer Fire Department will install a new garage to protect emergency vehicles thanks to a grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority.
 
The $13,448 Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $3,400 in matching funds, will enable the department to add a new 24×24 foot garage to help protect firetrucks and specialized equipment from the weather.
 
“Our budget for a year is limited and we’re taking care of six trucks with that,” Sheffield VFD Fire Chief Harry R. Falkenberg said. “When you’re taking these vehicles out in the rough terrain that surrounds us, you can be fighting fires for three or four days at a time, depending on how big they are. It’s really rough on them. This grant is going to help keep them ready to go.”
 
Falkenberg said the department’s vehicles have been damaged by hailstorms and other harsh weather conditions, and the new garage will help protect first responder vehicles, including a new utility task vehicle the department has acquired.
 
“We were running out of options on what we could do to protect the vehicles,” he said. “The grant will allow us to remove mother nature from the equation.”
 
The grant also will help the department purchase a ductless climate control unit as part of its plans to convert its old station into a dedicated fitness training center for firefighters. Moving the fitness equipment to that facility will free up space in the main station and help prepare firefighters for the work they are called upon to do, Falkenberg said.
 
The community grant is one of 34 grants awarded recently through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves.
 
Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted in July. More information is available at lcra.org/cdpp.

About LCRA
The Lower Colorado River Authority serves customers and communities throughout Texas by managing the lower Colorado River; generating and transmitting electric power; providing a clean, reliable water supply; and offering outdoor adventures at more than 40 parks along the Colorado River from the Texas Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. LCRA and its employees are committed to fulfilling our mission to enhance the quality of life of the Texans we serve through water stewardship, energy and community service. LCRA was created by the Texas Legislature in 1934 and receives no state appropriations. For more information, visit lcra.org.

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