Princess Anne Courthouse
Volunteer Rescue Squad – Station 5
The Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Fire Department was formed by 12 local residents in April of 1947, when the area was still the heart of Princess Anne County. It was formed because of the need for the service in the area. The nearest Fire station was at the oceanfront in what was then the Town of Virginia Beach. The organization was officially chartered by the Commonwealth of Virginia, State Corporation Commission, as the Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Fire Department on November 24,
[i] 1947. The farmers and citizens that formed the squad, made several requests to the state and to the National Guard for the donation of a fire engine which were all denied.
Mr. Frank Kellam sponsored the station a great deal in its early days. Mr. Kellam was a prominent local business man who helped unite the community and raised $5000.00 and The Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Fire Department was finally able to purchase a fire truck. The first fire truck purchased by Courthouse was on a used Ford F-6 chassis and was built in the Hilltop area by the Cadis Camper Company. Mr. Cadis was a volunteer firefighter, at the London Bridge Volunteer Fire Department.
The original fire “station” was a small, wood barn off North Landing Rd that was owned by Titus Sawyer. The barn was only used to house the fire truck; there were no sleeping or living quarters.
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In September 1948, R.H. West created a committee to plan for and construct a new station at Princess Anne Courthouse. The committee members were:
F. W. Kellam, Chairman: F. E. Kellam, O. H. Buyrn and S. Paul Brown
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Shortly after, the Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Fire Department moved into a newer building in the courthouse complex. This new two story cinder block building was located directly across the street from the modern day Shell Station and next door to the historic Princess Anne Masonic Lodge #25. The downstairs had two bays that were used to house the apparatus. The upstairs was used for meetings, sleeping, and living quarters, in addition, the fire station was also used for social functions, such as dances and parties.
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In 1963, Princess Anne County merged with the Town of Virginia Beach, to form the Independent City of Virginia Beach.
In 1968, the department, now the Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad, moved from this station into the “modern” station at 2461 Princess Anne Rd. (Bldg. 13 in the Municipal Center complex) where it has operated from continuously since 1968. This new modern station was built by the city for the Volunteers because the new city needed to increase the size of its court building and the property that the Volunteers were located on would become the parking lot for the new Circuit Court Building. Not long after the merger, in 1971, the city leaders decided that a paid fire service was needed. A single paid fireman was placed in each existing fire station. The rescue squad remained a volunteer service along with a few dedicated volunteer firefighters.
In 1999, the now organization now known as the Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department, recognized that there had been heavy growth in the Red Mill, Strawbridge and Ocean Lakes areas of the city. Recognizing this fact The the Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department opened a rescue substation in a previous construction equipment maintenance facility to better serve the areas of Red Mill, Strawbridge and Ocean Lakes. Lakeside Construction Corporation formally donated this property to The Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department on April 14, 2015 in a presentation made in front of the Virginia Beach City Council.
On May 28, 2003, the new General Booth Fire and EMS station at 1468 Nimmo Parkway was dedicated. Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department began operations at this facility in mid March 2003.
*Credit, The Benson Family, for their assistance in documenting Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Rescue Squad’s history.
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Between the dates of February 15, 2019 and March 29, 2019 the following individuals have advanced to the current EMT Certification Level:
AEMT
Boyd, Charles
Carey, John
EMT-B
Busch, Jacob
Chappell, Dylan
Flannery, Megan
Gustafson, Chad
Halferty, Kelly
Keeney, Jennifer
Nietsch, Katrina
Rhodes, James
BLS Intern
Albrecht, Jessica
Ames, Julie
Basile, Memory
Bayona, Caleb
Boger, Katelyn
Burgess, Kiersten
Calteron, Alvin
Clark, Donald
Freeman, Tiffany
Garcia, David
Garcia, Nicole
Glomski-Watts, Leigh Ann
Gulak, Leslie
Hicks, Tanner
Hoffman, Dustin
Jernigan, Jessica
Khadivi, Aram
King, Tyquaeza
Potter, John
Rose, Jonathan
Wooten, Charles
Young, Nicholas
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COMMUNITY APPRECIATION
Testimonials and letters from grateful neighbors
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QUICK LINK TO YOUR WEEKLY UPDATES
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Your VBEMS Updates can be accessed at any time by visiting
HERE
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HAPPY APRIL BIRTHDAY!
We want to recognize your birthday!
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We would LOVE your newsletter contributions!
Do you have events to share on our future calendar?
Have an idea for a story? Questions? Compliments?
Other input?
Contact us!
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IT'S NEW, IMPROVED AND IT NEEDS YOU!
We are pleased to announce that
Rescue Lines
is undergoing a makeover to make it more relevant than ever!
Rescue Lines
will now be sent directly to your email on a monthly basis and will be expanded to include critical VBEMS updates.
On a quarterly basis, we will include stories from
Rescue Lines
in a downloadable PDF version which can be printed and shared or sent digitally to donors, family and friends. Printed copies of the quarterly version can be requested free of charge from EMS; contact VBEMS at
RescueLines@vbrescuecouncil.org
for guidelines, requests and further details.
Every month,
Rescue Lines
will also feature a special offer or giveaway for rescue personnel, so be certain to open it.
WE NEED YOUR HELP
.
This newsletter is not only created for you, but also created by you! In the new and improved
Rescue Lines
, we would like to take a month to individually spotlight each Squad, the VBEMS Personnel and the Specialty Teams in the
SQUAD SPOTLIGHT.
We hope you will read, enjoy and contribute to your newsletter.
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$100 Gift Card WINNER!
Johnathan Waters
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Just for being a part of this group you will be automatically entered into a drawing each month!
Be sure to check every newsletter for all the news you need to know and to see if you are the lucky WINNER!
If you are the winner, contact
Mary-Ellen McLean, Program Officer, VBRSF, Phone number: (757) 437-4830 or email address:
mmclean@vbrescuefoundation.org
to collect your prize!
Members are eligible to win each month, but can only be a prize winner once per year.
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