Now the department has 16 firefighters, a temporary firehouse, vehicles, equipment and state licensing in place that allows them to legally respond to fires in rural parts of Bell County.
For now, the group can only provide support to other established volunteer fire departments but the men and women of Sparta Valley are determined to complete the training and paperwork that would allow them to become first responders for most properties along rural Sparta Road.
For some homeowners in the Denmans Loop area, the station couldn’t come too soon. In some cases homeowners’ insurance rates have doubled over the past two years, since Belton scaled back its first responder fire service to within its city limits.
Belton and county officials have both responded to complaints about insurance rates from residents in that area.
On March 4, Sparta Valley held its first formal meeting. Since that time equipment donations from local agencies have come pouring in and a couple that lives on Sparta Road has gone out of their way to make sure the department gets off to a good start.
The department now has four fire trucks, including a brush truck, an engine, a small tanker and a 2.5-ton tanker delivered this week.
The Texas Forest Service donated the large tanker and the brush truck, which used to be owned by the Kempner fire department.
Riesel donated the small tanker truck and 439 Water Supply purchased the engine for $3,500 from the Golinda fire department and donated it to Sparta Valley.
“We’ll probably continue to support them financially because we feel like it is a very worthwhile endeavor, particularly since the city of Belton no longer responds to fire calls within their ETJ (extraterritorial jurisdiction),” said Michael Beavers, 439 Water secretary treasurer. “A large number of our customers live within the ETJ of Belton and now depend on fire response from Stillhouse Hollow, some 12 miles away.”
More equipment is on the way for the department. Bell County Commissioners Court has an item on its agenda Monday that indicates the county is set to donate money to the start-up.
Steve Casey, Bell County fire marshal, spoke to commissioners last week about the need the department has for ladders. Discussion among commissioners indicated the department should expect a donation of about $3,000.
The next big need for the department is land for a fire station, but there appears to be no hurry for them to move off the property of Eddie and Pat Beard. The couple has become ardent supporters of the department.
“I’ve done more socializing since February than I have in 29 years at work,” Mrs. Beard said. “Now I got a fire station, so I have to socialize.”
The four trucks are parked on the Beard property, and Eddie is talking about removing fences to allow for more parking space. He says the volunteers come all hours of the day and night, but he doesn’t mind it.
In fact, Eddie encourages it by the way he treats the men and women. He converted his woodshop into a dayroom for the firefighters. He also built offices for Chief David Kirk and Mrs. Beard, who serves as president of the Sparta Valley board.
As if that is not enough, almost as soon as a new truck is delivered, Beard, a retired truck driver, begins fine-tuning it.
“He’s got that thing,” his wife said. “He’s got to make things work.”
Kirk said the Beards have been so good to him and the other volunteers that he has mixed feelings about finding another place.
“I don’t know if I want another station built because it feels like home now,” he said.
When Kirk is asked how he found so many volunteers in such a short amount of time he says, “They found us.”
Kirk said after media reports got word out to the community about the venture people began expressing interest in being a part of the department. He said the response came from experienced firefighters to people with a desire to learn.
Three to four of the volunteers are expected to have completed the training necessary to become certified beginner firefighters, Kirk said.
“I am extremely impressed with the amount of work they’ve done in such a short time,” Beavers said.
“We’re grateful that those men and women are out there volunteering,” he said.
