Grant Narrative Touches on Mutual Aid, Firefighter Safety
Jefferson & Marion Townships, Indiana (pop. 2,600) – Firefighter T.J. Skelton,
Secretary on the Board of Directors at the Jefferson Township Fire Department, wrote his second grant
application to the Department of Homeland Security in 2005. On August 19, during the first round of
award announcements, he learned that the department had won $68,780 to purchase ten sets of turnout
gear, 11 SCBAs, a RIT kit and a thermal imager. T.J. sent his draft narrative to three people for
review and editing prior to finalizing it. He also got ideas from winning grant narratives available
at www.thermalimager.com.
Benefits of Thermal Imaging: “In our application, I mentioned a structure fire in 2004 that had taken the life of a man. If we had a TI at that incident, we could have located him sooner. We also talked about firefighter safety, tying it to both the purchase of the RIT kit and the purchase of a thermal imager. We have eight fire departments in the county, and at the time, only one of them had a thermal imager. So we argued that our TI would not only benefit us, but would also benefit three specific mutual aid departments.”
Demonstrating Need: “We discussed the protection of critical infrastructure in our application, mentioning that our department covers Midwestern Gas and Transmission, a transmission point for natural gas, and an Indiana Power and Light power generating plant. In terms of financial need, I wrote about our operating budget of $20,000 from taxes, and the amount contributed by our department fundraising. Pike County was a big coal mining area, and a lot of the mines have shut down, so I talked about unemployment and the general state of our local economy.”
Resources Utilized: “Ryan Young, president of the board, had gone through a grant workshop a few years ago. Ryan’s input was instrumental in winning this grant. Bullard took a look at my narrative as well. My mother also read it a couple of times, and she is my worst critic when it comes to writing. All of the feedback was helpful.”
Keys to success: “The reviewers know what they’re doing. Keep it as simple and straightforward as possible. Don’t make it flowery. Tell the straight truth, and don’t add anything to it. In 2004, we asked for funding in three different categories. In 2005, we just asked for PPE and equipment, and we stayed very focused. I think that helped our application be successful.”
(For the full 2005 Jefferson Township Fire Department narrative, click here.)