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Thank you for visiting the Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters
Association website.
STRIVE = State Tuition Reimbursement as Incentive for
Volunteer Emergency Responders
In October, 2012, the Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters
Association was awarded a $1.96 million SAFER Grant. The intent
of this grant is to help retain & recruit more Volunteers
throughout the State of Nebraska.
STRIVE is one of two components of the SAFER grant received by
the NSVFA, the other being eight Recruitment and Retention
workshops to be held over the next four years, the first of
which will be at the 2013 Fire School.
HOW DO YOU APPLY FOR STRIVE?
KICK OFF of the STRIVE program will be February 1, 2013.
This program is for any & all current or future Volunteers. In
order to qualify you must commit to Volunteer at your local
department for 2 years; in that time period you must be active &
in good standing. Once you have made the commitment you can
receive up to $4,400 in tuition reimbursement for a year for you
or for an immediate family member (someone who lives in your
household or who is claimed as a dependent on your taxes). You
can serve your commitment during the time you receive the
reimbursement or during a period immediately after the education
has been completed.
In order to apply for this grant visit
Volunteerfirefighter.org/NE. Once on this page select
the STRIVE tab. This site will include a brief
description of the program, an Administrative Guide & an
Application with directions on how to apply. There will only be
75 awards given each year over the next 4 years, so
following directions will be extremely important. The
Administrative Guide will be your road map for the application
process; it will explain all of the guidelines you must follow
before & after you receive your reimbursement. If you have any
questions or concerns contact the Redden Group at 855-VOLFIRE or
Kate@VolunteerFirefighter.org. The NSVFA is looking forward
to the opportunity to assist in the education of 300 Volunteer
Emergency Responders over the next four years!
Applications for the spring, 2013 semester must be
postmarked by March 1 and applications for the fall, 2013
semester must be postmarked by September 1 to NSVFA STRIVE, PO
BOX 549, BOISE, ID 83701.
FEBRUARY 12, 2013
The seventh annual Nebraska Senator’s Appreciation Breakfast was
hosted by the NSVFA and State Auxiliary on February 12, 2013,
and was a very successful event.
Twenty-seven senators and two legislative aides attended the
breakfast. Thirty-five NSVFA, NVFC and E Board members and
thirteen auxiliary members were in attendance. Also attending
were Acting State Fire Marshal, Jim Heine and State Forester,
Dr. Scott Josiah.
Novelty lighters were exhibited at the breakfast for senators to
experience the nature and danger of these lighters in a public
setting.
A banner providing a cost analysis of providing gear for one
firefighter including SCBA along with all the gear displayed on
a mannequin was made available for the Senators to view.
Many bills were discussed with the senators with the main focus
being on four bills that are goals of the NSVFA and Nebraska
Fire Chiefs’ Association for this legislative session, LB 62,
403, 440 and 634.
The NSVFA and Ne Fire Chiefs Association urges members to send
emails supporting the above bills to the Committees listed for
each bill. Support is also needed from members to attend
hearings. More information on this will be made available
through Constant Contact or information on legislative bills,
committees and hearings is always available on the internet at:
http://nebraskalegislature.gov/index.php.
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Blair FD member, Bob Tichota visiting with Senator Kate Sullivan, District 41 and Senator Tom Hansen, District 42 to the right.
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Senator Bill Kintner, District 2 and Senator Dave Bloomfield, District 17 examining the novelty lighters on display.
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Senator Ken Haar, District 21 visiting with Kevin Campbell, Gretna FD; Casey McCoy, NFS; and Shane Cuttlers, Raymond FD.
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Senator Gaylen Hadley, District 37 visiting with an Blair FD auxiliary member, Sharlene Kuhr.
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Senator Sue Crawford and legislative aide, District 45 visiting with Dan Hawkins, Wymore FD; Tom Hamernik, Clarkson FD; and with Garland Goracke, Mead
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Banner and mannequin display at the Breakfast.
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Full House at the Seventh annual Nebraska Senators Appreciation Breakfast
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Senator Pete Pirsch, District 4, visiting with Micheal Dwyer, Arlington FD
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“Excerpt from NVFC email of October 14, 2011”
Remember that
fire prevention is something we need to emphasize all year long.
Fire departments and Fire Corps programs are encouraged to
continue to strengthen their prevention and safety campaigns and
spread community awareness to help keep residents safe and
prevent tragedy throughout the year.
The NSVFA has a very active Fire
Prevention Committee who is happy to help departments find
resources and activities related to Fire Prevention.
JOIN TODAY! Department’s
memberships will speak as a stronger voice in guiding the future
of all Fire & Emergency Services in Nebraska. Enrollment
documents were mailed June 7 to department addresses but are
also available on the Forms page of this web site or at the
Membership tab.
The NSVFA looks forward to all previous departments’ memberships
being renewed and welcomes new members. New departments will
also have received enrollment packets and the office will assist
with any inquiries or can assist with attendance of a
representative at a department meeting to assist with questions.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE: Membership dues for the new term, July 1,
2012 to June 30, 2013, remain the same and will be $20.00 per
member as approved by motion at the NSVFA E-Board. Significant
to membership enrollment is that a grace period of July 1 to
September 1 has been established for NSVFA dues to be paid for
renewing memberships. What does this mean? Memberships not
renewed by September 1, will have the member benefits of the
newspaper and $4,000 accidental death and dismemberment
insurance discontinued until such time that memberships are
renewed.
Also available is the Gold Badge Associate Membership and
Corporate Sponsor Membership, all on the Forms page of this web
site.
To say thanks for all you do, California Casualty is giving
away a 2013 Bass Boat or $10,000 cash!
 California
Casualty has been providing specialized auto and home
insurance to those that make our communities better for over
100 years. This exclusive program offers special firefighter
rates, money-saving discounts, exceptional customer service
and unique firefighter benefits. To learn more or to get a
quote, call 1-866-680-5143 or visit
http://www.calcas.com/nsvfa. Be sure to mention that
you’re a member of the Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters
Association. You can also reach California Casualty’s web
page by clicking on their icon on the right side of this
page or by clicking:
http://www.nsvfa.org/partners.htm.
Win a Bass Boat:
California Casualty appreciates all you do -
which is why we’re giving away a brand new
2013 Bass Boat or $10,000 cash
to one lucky winner! All entries must be received by July
12, 2013. No quote or purchase is necessary to enter. One
winner will be selected in a random drawing on or about July
25, 2013. All taxes are the responsibility of winners.
Entering to win is simple! All you have to do is complete
the online form at
http://go.calcas.com/boat. California Casualty will
select one lucky firefighter, peace officer or EMT as the
winner of the Bass Boat!
Nominate a Hero:
Also being promoted by California Casualty during 2013 is a
new program called, Nominate a Hero. Each month,
California Casualty will select one “Hero of the Month” to
receive a $250 gift card as a small token of their thanks.
Each monthly winner will also be entered to win a $10,000
luxury vacation.
If your nominated hero becomes the “Hero of the Month” a $50
gift card will be sent to the person who completed the
nominating process. Please visit the website link:
http://www.nominatemyhero.com for more information and
to complete the nomination and share information about your
nominee.
New Benefits: During the
2009-10 year, the NSVFA established three new benefit
partnerships. In addition to the American Income Life $4,000
accidental dismemberment insurance, the Nebraska Firefighter
newspaper, the Fire School class fee member discount, and the
availability of Nebraska Public Agency Investment Trust to
members of the NSVFA, membership now also offers the following
new benefits.
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ATIRAcredit Master Card
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California
Casualty Auto and Home Insurance
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Columbia Southern University online education
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Enterprise rental discounts
Visit the NSVFA Member Benefit
Partnerships tab for additional information or click the icons
to the right for more details.
The NSVFA sponsors
lobbying at state and national levels, supporting a Nebraska
State Lobbyist and two representatives to the National Volunteer
Fire Council. Each year the NSVFA and Nebraska Fire Chief’s
Association executive boards meet with their Legislative and EMS
Committees to choose legislative goals which senators may
sponsor in the upcoming session. Each January, the NSVFA and
Fire Chiefs sponsor an annual breakfast with the senators to
which all members are invited where they may visit with senators
about the importance of the fire and EMS services in Nebraska
and to ask the senators assistance with upcoming legislative
matters. Following the breakfast, a Legislative Stance meeting
is held that is open to all members of the NSVFA and Nebraska
Fire Chief’s Association where upcoming legislative bills are
discussed and stances developed by the two Associations.
These efforts have paid off. The following list of bills is a
small sample of those approved in recent years that are
important to Nebraska fire and EMS services:
APPROVED April 5,
2007, LB 160 to Change fire and rescue department
provisions relating to clothing, equipment, and donations
APPROVED March 31,
2008, LB 948, the Emergency Responders Job
Protection Act, was incorporated into LB 1096
APPROVED April 9,
2009, LB 110, Providing for Specialty License Plates
(The Department of Motor Vehicles processes and regulations
for this bill are being developed.)
APPROVED April 22,
2009, LB 206, Adopt the In the Line of Duty
Dependent Education Act This bill will provide education
benefits for surviving children of LODDs for those attending
state universities, state colleges and community colleges
located in Nebraska.
APPROVED May 13,
2009, LB 92, Move-Over Bill, Serious support was
provided by the NSVFA and the AAA.
APPROVED May 19,
2009, LB 198, Adopt the Reduced Cigarette Ignition
Propensity Act Beginning January 1, 2010, cigarette
manufacturers and cigarette retailers will be required to
produce, market and sell only cigarettes that comply with
the Fire-Safe Cigarette law.
APPROVED April 14,
2010, LB 780, Mental-Mental Workers Comp - a first
responder suffering mental injury will be able to recover
workers’ compensation benefits upon establishing certain
criteria. The law will expire in four years
The Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters
Association
Needs your membership!
Please refer to the membership tab for more information.
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