Volunteer firefighters help us celebrate life on a daily basis. They donate their time to educating our youth, they save us from the daily perils of life, and they often provide entertainment for us in the form of block parties and parades.
Now, it's our turn to celebrate for them.
If you were living in the mid-1800s and your house caught on fire, a horse-drawn engine with a hand water pump would have come to your rescue. Fortunately, by the 1900s the first fire engines were invented and put into use, and this is what we see now when fire strikes.
On Saturday the Brockton Fire Company will host a parade to celebrate the purchase of a new 2010 KME fire truck. The parade will be followed by a "housing" ceremony.
At this point, you might be wondering what a housing ceremony is or, if you've already seen one, you might be questioning why fire companies do this or where the tradition stems from.
According to fire company histories, a housing ceremony and this can vary from one fire company to another is the traditional way of celebrating the purchase of a new fire truck. It often consists of a parade, a ceremony with some rituals, and then a post-party.
Neighboring fire companies, members of the fire company purchasing the fire truck, and other local emergency personnel gather and literally pu