BY RYAN O’CONNOR

The Dunbarton Fire Department received $10,400 in the last year, after the passing of residents Vera Fogg, Nancy Graybill, and former selectmen and Fire Department volunteers Peter Montgomery and John Swindlehurst II.

“Obviously we appreciate these donations as we provide a service to the town at a pretty reasonable rate for a department that’s almost 100 percent volunteer,” said Fire Chief Jon Wiggin.

“Our goal, when money is donated to the association, is to purchase equipment we don’t have the funds for in the regular town budget.”

Swindlehurst served 50 years with the Dunbarton Fire Department, including 14 years as chief and several years as the forest fire warden.

The $2,000 donated by Swindlehurst went toward the purchase of new protective forest fire gear and forestry hand tools for the department.

With the $3,400 donated from Fogg, the department purchased a water and ice rescue sled and equipment.

“Her husband did the same when he died,” said Fogg’s close friend Donna Dunn of her estate’s contribution to the fire department. “She had needed their services several times and thought they were a great group of very caring people, who, as volunteers, were in need of a little extra help.”

Likewise, a memorial fund in honor of Montgomery contributed to a new laptop computer and PowerPoint projector, which totaled roughly $3,000.

Other funds from Montgomery were combined with money left by memorial contributions from Graybill, wife of former Selectman Chuck Graybill, to purchase two automatic defribulators.

“Now we have two more (defibrillators) on our apparatus,” said Wiggin. “We only had one on our ambulance, so if it was out of town we didn’t have one readily available.”

The state allowed Dunbarton to go on a combined bid, which helped Dunbarton receive the defribulators at a discounted rate of $1,000 apiece, said Wiggin, who noted that surplus funds from the donations will go toward scholarship funds in town.

The Fire Department also recently received memorial contributions from Leonard Jelly and Louis Dearborn.

Outside of these contributions and money from estates, Wiggin said the only other way the Dunbarton Fire Department Association is able to obtain additional funds is through its annual chicken barbecue.

In the past, benefits from the barbecue have been used to purchase several items for the department, including a new sign outside the public safety building.

This year, the fundraiser will take place Sunday, June 24, at the fire station on Robert Rogers Road, next to Dunbarton Elementary School.

Tickets are $7 for adults and $4 for children and can be purchased at the Fire Department or through any firefighter or association member.

Tickets must be purchased by June 18.