Welcome to Agate Fire Protection District
At Agate Fire, we are dedicated to ensuring the safety and well-being of our community through our comprehensive fire services, EMS, and fire prevention education. Our mission is to protect life, property, and the environment, and we take great pride in serving the residents of Agate and beyond.
History of Agate Fire
The Agate Rural Volunteer Fire Department was officially organized on December 13, 1950, when gasoline was 15 cents a gallon. Robert Mohler, William Anderson, Harold Scott, Walter Butler, and Emerson Thistlewood signed the official papers with the State of Colorado as the first officers of the Agate Rural Volunteer Fire Department. Robert Mohler signed as the first Fire Chief.
Agate then had an official fire department with active volunteers, but without funds. A request for money went out to the community. In 1951, the firefighters performed a minstrel show as their first fund-raiser. The women in the community also played an enormous part in this show as they helped cook food, sew costumes, apply makeup, and anything else that was requested of them. The Agate School gym was filled with support from Agate and neighboring communities to watch the newly formed department of volunteers perform. It was a total community effort. Donations, large and small were received. A new 1951 two-ton Chevrolet truck was purchased for $1830.00 along with the material to build the 800-gallon tank. This was the sole piece of equipment owned by the fire department until 1977, when a local rancher, Jim Jolly, donated the money to purchase a used 4-wheel drive pickup. The fire department purchased a 1975 F-350 4x4 dually pickup and equipped it to fight grass fires. The department is still using this truck today. The original 1951 truck finally retired in 2001 with 2700 miles on it after 51 years of service. The old truck was no longer capable of responding to fires quickly and was in need of repair.
The original fire house is still located in the town of Agate, but is no longer used. The old building had just enough room to fit the original fire truck. On May 11, 1979, Agate Rural Volunteer Fire Department received their certificate of occupancy to move into their new fire house located on First Street in Agate. It was a joint effort between Agate Mutual Telephone Co. and the Agate Rural Volunteer Fire Department to acquire this new firehouse. It still has a dirt floor and the department quickly outgrew this two bay building.
For many years fire phones, which were located in a few homes throughout the community were used as the means for communicating the location of a fire. The fire call would come and those who had fire phones would call their neighbors on their line to report the location of the fire. Today, the department has a modern, state-of-the-art, communication system.
From its beginnings until 2010, the sole resources for funding the department were through donations and grants. With very limited budgets of about $6000.00 a year, the volunteers managed to keep the department running and they continued maintenance on Agate’s fire-fighting equipment so when they were called upon, they were ready to respond. By the later part of the 1990’s the number of active volunteers began to dwindle and the live the department was challenged.
During the summer of 2001, a few in the Agate Community realized the need for more modern equipment as the community started to grow. Meetings were held and committees were appointed. Larry Rector was elected as Chief. To help raise funds to move the department forward and to get a staff of volunteers properly trained, a barbecue was planned. Community members and businesses along the I-70 corridor donated money and supplies for the barbecue. The community rallied and over 200 people attended the 1st Annual Agate Rural Volunteer Department Barbecue. Over $5000.00 was donated to the department. In addition, neighboring fire departments came to the call and donated bunker gear, fire hoses, training classes, and other equipment needed by Agate. A few departments saw our need for vehicles and donated used brush, tanker, and rescue trucks to the Agate Rural Volunteer Fire Department. Later a building fund was established and donations accepted to build the new station at its current location.
In 2009 the community served by Agate Rural Volunteer Fire Department voted to become a district with support from property tax levies. The first Board of Directors were elected with Barry Hollembeak serving as President, Kent Dyson as Vice President, Vic Craven as Secretary / Treasurer. Jim Craven and Lyndon Burnett as Directors. Larry Rector was appointed by the Board to be the first Chief of the newly formed Agate Fire Protection District (AFPD).
The Department was staffed entirely by volunteers and like their founding fathers in 1950, they were extremely dedicated. Today, the AFPD has 20 active volunteer and part-time paid staff including 5 EMTs and 3 Paramedics. In addition, Agate is surrounded by a nucleus of support from farmers, ranchers, and townspeople that are always willing to help. Without the support of the community, it would be difficult to keep the department operating.
The AFPD continues to hold its annual barbecue to help raise funds. This time is also used to thank the community for their continued support. It is a good time for the community to come together and learn firsthand what the AFPD has accomplished in the past year and allows the community to meet the volunteers.
In its 63 year history Agate has been a busy department. Most fires are prairie fires or haystack fires. However, the fire department is receiving more emergency calls for structure fires, vehicle accidents, and medical emergencies. The AFPD covers over 400 square miles with a population under 600 people. It is the only district in Elbert County that covers the I-70 corridor.