Background
The Foundation’s first priority has always been to wildland firefighters and their families. We strive to provide immediate assistance to help with financial needs that can quickly become a crisis for a family who has just lost their breadwinner.
In 1994, the Foundation began using a purple ribbon as a memorial symbol for line of duty deaths of our wildland firefighters. In 1998 the fire was put in the middle to represent the heart of the memorial being put in the center of NIFC.
Donations help the Foundation to:
- Provide immediate travel assistance to get an injured firefighter's family to their firefighter's bedside and assist with expenses for families while their firefighter is recovering.
- Arrange travel for crews to be able to take their fallen brothers home.
- Network crews and families with information and support after an injury or fatality.
- Give financial assistance to families of wildland firefighters killed in the line of duty, ensuring the home is maintained and children are provided for.
- Help an injured wildland firefighter meet their financial needs until they receive benefits, or are able to go back to work.
- Track injured firefighters to ensure they are receiving worker's comp benefits.
- Assist children returning to school after the loss of a parent.
- Ensure survivors are able to attend "Family Fire" the Foundation's annual gathering of families, co-workers, and wildland fire service personnel. Families share their path of healing and their children meet other kids struggling with the loss of a parent.
Secondly, the Foundation has worked diligently to provide avenues for recognition and honor for wildland firefighters, past, present and future. Those efforts include:
- Ongoing collaboration with the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) to plan, develop, maintain, and sustain the Wildland Firefighter Monument.
- Placing wildland firefighter statues in public venues.
- Creation and installation of markers at the Monument.
And, third, the Foundation will support programs and partners that work toward reducing the potential and probability of Wildland Firefighters being injured or killed in preventable line of duty deaths.
Read more about this topic: Wildland Firefighter Foundation
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