Cause for celebration: With over-sized scissors in hand, President Rick Wenzel cut the ribbon for Station 9, Timberline’s newest station in Virginia Canyon on October 17, 2023. PHOTO BY MINDY LEARY[/caption]

Cars and fire trucks lined the dirt road leading to Timberline’s newest station: Station 9, located at 7561 Virginia Canyon Road in Central City. Residents and firefighters gathered for the Open House on Tuesday, October 17, 2023, to enjoy refreshments and witness the ribbon-cutting.

Many local and state officials attended, including Gilpin County Commissioners, the Nederland Fire Chief, Gilpin County’s Sheriff, the Chief of the Gilpin Ambulance Authority, the Executive Director of the State Department of Local Affairs (DOLA), and the North Central Regional Manager of DOLA.

Timberline Fire Chief Paul Ondr shared some of the history of the site. Back in the 1970s, a group of residents in the area got together and formed the Russell Gulch Fire Department, funded entirely through fundraising and help from neighboring districts.

In the late 1980s, they ran out of volunteers and disbanded. For the next 30 years, Central City would respond to calls in the area. After the consolidation of High Country and Colorado Sierra in 2001, residents were interested in joining Timberline.

After much expressed interest and an inclusion vote in 2017, every property in the county became included in a fire protection district. After a long search for a central property, Timberline purchased the Virginia Canyon property from Robert and Anna Young of the Young Ranch in 2021.

The station is staffed strictly with in-district volunteers and is seeking more volunteers from the region.

The President of the Timberline Board of Directors, Rick Wenzel, thanked the staff, volunteers, officials, and residents for coming to the event. He said he is proud to include this area in the district.

Chris Lemay, DOLA’s Executive Director, spoke at the ribbon-cutting: “We do a lot of these kinds of funding programs throughout the state and this funding comes from energy impact assistance dollars. I know that this is the kind of program that’s going to make a big difference in the lives of residents of Gilpin County.”

Ondr revealed the new dedication sign for the station that included a portion of their vision statement and thanks to volunteers, board members, and DOLA.

Wenzel then officially cut the ribbon, along with fellow board members, followed by applause.

At about 6:30 p.m. the board held their monthly meeting.

President Rick Wenzel, Vice President John Bushey, and Members at Large Mary Kate McKenna, Kristin Turner, and John Carder attended the meeting, as well as Fire Chief Paul Ondr and Administrative Chief Jennifer Hinderman. The highlight of the meeting was the Chief’s Report.

During the Chief’s Report, Ondr shared that TFPD responded to 65 calls in September. Average response time district-wide was 8 minutes 32 seconds, which is about 2 minutes less than last month. The average for the year is 10 minutes 18 seconds.

In Corona Heights 24 properties participated in the chipping event and 31 cubic yards of slash were removed. Roadside mitigation will begin the first week of November.

TFPD will be replacing some of their wildland helmets, hoods, and boots with funds from a grant in the amount of $9,301 from the Division of Fire Protection and Control.

The October training subject is structural search and rescue, focusing on rapid, effective search techniques as well as efficient victim movement and removal.

Ondr finished the report by introducing two new volunteers who live out of district but are seeking careers in firefighting.

The meeting adjourned at 6:54 p.m.

The next regular Board Meeting for Timberline Fire Protection District will be held on Tuesday, November 15, 2023, at 6 p.m. at Station 3, 19126 Highway 119, Black Hawk.