New Jersey American Water announced the second year of a grant program for volunteer fire departments, ambulance squads and volunteer first responder units located in the company's service areas.
According to a release, grants will be awarded to cover the costs associated with purchasing personal protective gear, communications equipment, firefighting tools, water handling equipment, training and related activities/materials that will be used to support community fire protection. The deadline to apply is Feb. 22, 2012.
Applying volunteer organizations must send a letter of application with the following information:
- Contact information, including name and phone number
- Description of the organization(s) seeking support, including fire company name, address, and county in which it is located
- Overview of the specific project to be funded
- Grant amount requested
- Problem/challenges that the project will address
- Timeframe for implementation of the project
- Summary of other sources being approached for support of the project
- Project budget
"We hope that through this program, we can provide meaningful financial assistance to these volunteer organizations that are critical to our communities. While we provide the water to fight fires, it's these brave men and women volunteering their time and skills that keep our homes and businesses safe," said Peter Eschbach, director of communications and external affairs at New Jersey American Water.
Reimbursement for specific training classes, including the cost of training manuals and student workbooks, is eligible. Individuals are not eligible to receive grants. Only uniformed volunteer units serving New Jersey American Water's service territory are eligible to receive funding.
Regional or countywide applications are encouraged to maximize the number of fire and emergency organizations that would benefit from the grants. The maximum grant amount is $1,000.
Applications can be mailed to: New Jersey American Water, 1025 Laurel Oak Rd., Voorhees, N.J. 08043; Attn: Volunteer Fire Fighter Grant Program c/o Peter Eschbach
New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water, is a publicly traded water utility.
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