It’s all about timing. 
At a monthly Local Lodge 1498 meeting, on the first Monday of the month, a program called IAM H.E.L.P.S. was brought up and discussed. The next day Jeff Elliott, one of the members of the lodge, ran into a friend of his from the Oskaloosa Fire Department, Dave Christenson. The conversation lead to the topic of clearing away snow from fire hydrants and how that impacted public safety. The rest–you could say–is history.
As this concern was relayed back to the membership, it was apparent that action was necessary. And so the members of Local Lodge 1498 in Oskaloosa Iowa joined the Adopt-A-Hydrant program and now are responsible for clearing snow from 27 fire hydrants near the Clow Valve Company where they are employed. A facility that manufactures…you guessed it…fire hydrants.
“This is such a perfect fit for these community activists. Not only do they care about making sure that a quality product leaves the plant, but they also want to ensure that the firefighters have unfettered access to the hydrants so they can do their job” stated servicing business representative John Herrig .
According to Herrig, “This is how we “IAM” in Oskaloosa. We do our jobs, we give a voice to the rank and file, and we help out in the community. Just like the motto says on our organization’s flag, Justice on the Job – Service to the Community. These members’ actions exemplify that motto.”
Member Jeff Elliott can hardly believe how a simple conversation with a friend, can snowball into all of this fanfare, “I can’t believe this has gotten so big. We’re just doing what is right.”
The Unions commitment to community safety has gained much positive attention. As Brother Elliott puts it, “I see nothing but good to come from this.”
(Photo courtesy of Ken Allsup and Oskynews.org)
