A Spectacular School Pick-up

By Jillian Daley

Dane and Adrea Chichester were in an enviable position. Their two little ones, 6-year-old Cooper and 4-year-old Kennedy, were about to board a fire engine after school on May 19.

The Chichester family came to be in this happy situation because they scored the winning bid in the North Marion All-Schools Auction in April for a ride home from school on a Hubbard Fire District truck. The vehicle came in brilliant yellow, complete with a ladder and three firefighters commanding it.

The moment was a surprise and it went over big with Cooper (kindergarten) and Kennedy (preschool).

“They didn’t know till today,” Dane Chichester said. “We didn’t want them badgering us.”

“We know how it goes!” Adrea Chichester agreed. “What day? What day? What day?”

Instead, the two pint-sized potential firefighters were struck silent, awed with the large vehicle and the honor of roaring down the road in it. 

Before they rolled away, the whole family took photos with the engine and two of the firefighters in their uniforms, Hubbard Fire District Engineer/Emergency Medical Technician Ruben Verdugo and Engineer/Emergency Responder Jason Thompson.

In classic North Marion fashion, other drivers made way for the fire truck, and it drove away with two tiny faces peering through the windows and waving.

Congratulations, Chichester family!