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First Responders’ First Responder.
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When firefighter Charles “Chuck” McCormick died in a Peculiar, Missouri, blaze the morning of Sunday, January 5, HeroFundUSA CEO Darrell Smith heard about the tragedy within an hour. The next morning, Smith presented a check for McCormick’s family to West Peculiar Fire Chief Bobby Sperry.
Offering support to families of first responders like McCormick who have lost their lives or sustained critical injuries in the line of duty is part of the mission for the Blue Springsbased nonprofit, but first and foremost, Smith says HeroFund’s primary focus is providing funding and safety equipment for first responders in the area.
Of course, in a perfect world, public safety departments would have all the funding they need, but that’s often not the case.
“The money that city governments and county governments have to fund public safety services like law enforcement agencies and fire departments and things, it’s really good in some areas, but it really lacks in others,” Smith explains. “We try to fill the gap. We want to make sure that all We want to make sure that all first responders are as well protected as they can possibly be, whether it’s support coming from their department or the citizens in their service jurisdiction, and if they don’t have the money for something they need, we want to be there to help.”
first responders are as well protected as they can possibly be, whether it’s support coming from their department or the citizens in their service jurisdiction, and if they don’t have the money for something they need, we want to be there to help.”
Equipment might include wearable gear, like the turnout gear firefighters wear when they enter a burning building, or ballistic vests for police. HeroFund also helps departments purchase high-tech equipment like drones, which can be used by police to get a clearer picture of threats, or thermal imaging cameras that can help fire departments identify the location of hotspots.
“We understand we can’t prevent every tragedy, but if we can do something that can help prevent one, everything we do is worth it,” Smith says.
Founded by Smith, Rick Seithel, and Sam Silvio in December 2016, the organization may be relatively new, but it’s already made an impact in the community, raising $250,000 and assisting 10 first responder families, including eight line-of-duty deaths and two line-of-duty critical injuries. HeroFund has also provided funding to 26 Missouri and Kansas first responder agencies, and as of mid-January 2020, five additional first responder agencies have been approved for future funding. “We all have first responders in our family,” Smith says. “This just seemed like a natural tie-in, for us to do this to give back to them, help keep them safe, support their families, and let them know that we don’t just expect them to do their job without our full support.”
Departments can request assistance through a form on HeroFund’s website. Smith and company also actively reach out to local fire and police departments to inform them about how they can help. In the event a first responder sustains a critical injury or dies in the line of duty, the community of first responders reaches out to put it on Smith’s radar.
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“We’ve helped a lot of fire departments throughout the metro area, including the Kansas City, Missouri, Fire Department, the largest fire department in the state,” Smith says. In the event of a tragedy, Smith tries to be there within 48 hours, working through department personnel rather than reaching out directly to family in the immediate aftermath of a death or injury.
HeroFund is fully self-sustaining, with 100 percent of public support and fundraising income used in support of mission services. Fundraising events include Golfing Fore Heroes, happening this year on June 10 at Shoal Creek Golf Course, and Strike Force, a team bowling event on March 7 at Blue Spring’s Lunar Bowl. HeroFund also hosts Dining with Heroes, a special dining experience that features area restaurants and highlights local heroes in law enforcement, fire service, and emergency medical services professions.
Although HeroFund receives lots of thank you notes and hugs for the work it does, Smith is quick to deflect the praise back to first responders.
“They’re the ones that deserve our full gratitude and love and support because I could never do what they do. I can’t run into a burning building; I can’t run into an active shooter situation or crime scene. I’m not wired to be able to do that. But I can raise money so that when they do, they are as protected as they can possibly be with the best stateof-the-art ballistic safety equipment and fire protection,” he says, adding, “They don’t like it when we call them heroes, but we do it anyway, because in our book, they are.”
To learn more about HeroFund, visit herofundusa.org.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kelsey Cipolla is a local writer, editor, and social media specialist. Kelsey has covered everything from the Kansas City culinary scene to home design, health, fitness trends, hidden gems, and nonprofit in the Kansas City community.
