Today was a long and exhausting day with three stops for the road show. We started off in Jefferson City, MO at the capitol building. What a gorgeous building it is! The crowd was small and we had to cut our stop short because a Ren Faire (medieval fair) was taking place at the Capitol early in the afternoon and they needed to set-up. We did have a nice showing by the Jefferson City Fire Department who showed up with two trucks, including a ladder truck.
Our next stop was O’Fallon, MO and while it wasn’t an official stop on the road show tour schedule, we were very excited because of who we were visiting. Officer Andy Stowers with the O’Fallon Police Department has been working with his K-9 partner Bo for many years. Bo will be retiring later this year but he has also been nominated for the American Humane Association Hero Dog Awards. Andy had arranged everything for our one hour stop and he didn’t disappoint us. We had an official escort to the T.R. Hughes Ballpark and when we arrived, we were greeted by police and firefighters from O’Fallon and the surrounding area. Andy had hosted a fundraiser for the NFDM and presented Jerry with a check from the proceeds. While the visit was short at only an hour, it made our day.
The final stop for the day was in Springfield, IL. When we arrived, we were placed next to the Fallen Firefighters Memorial at the Illinois State Capitol Building. Illinois State Fire Marshal Larry Matkeitis was present and so was arson investigator Jay Crippen with the Carbondale Fire Department and his K-9 partner Pal. I did a quick interview with WAND 17 NBC and just as the reporter left, it started to sprinkle. We decided to wrap up early and everyone headed to the hotel for a nice rest. Everyone except for me because I was so close to my home in Normal, IL that I got a chance to sleep in my own bed – the first time in almost a week. My pets were happy to see me, my son was happy to see me, and I was happy to have a hot shower in my own home.
I am with O’FallonTV and we were there on the 23rd when you made your stop here in O’Fallon. We are putting a story together and would love to use photos off of your website.