LCRA and Pedernales Electric Cooperative representatives present a $23,296 grant to the Hoover Valley Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services for new, state-of-the-art radios. The grant is part of LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. Pictured, from left to right, are: Michael L. “Mike” Allen, LCRA Board member; Nancy Eckert Yeary, LCRA Board member; George W. Russell, LCRA Board member; Caroline Tinsley Porter, PEC community relations coordinator; Marc Talamantez, captain; Jayden Foster, Earl Foster’s grandson; Thomas Johnson, firefighter; Joe Schreiber, fire chief; Kristian Johnson, rehab coordinator; Pete Fuselier, Hoover Valley Volunteer Fire and EMS board second vice president; Susan Patten, LCRA Regional Affairs representative; and Earl Foster, Lakeway Municipal Utility District general manager and CDPP review committee member.
BURNET COUNTY Texas – Hoover Valley Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services will replace its outdated radios with new, state-of-the-art, hand-held ones thanks to a $23,296 grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority and Pedernales Electric Cooperative.
The community development grant, along with almost $10,000 in matching contributions, will allow the Hoover Valley department to purchase 16 radios and accessories. The new portable radios will enhance firefighter and public safety by helping firefighters share critical information with each other at the scene of an emergency, as well as providing a more reliable way to communicate with dispatchers. The new radios also will make it easier to patch in to other emergency responder channels to convey and receive information during mutual aid calls.
Fire Chief Joe Schreiber said the department’s radios have become increasingly unreliable and will not transmit or receive at all in some areas. In addition, the radios have reached the end of their useful life and are no longer supported by the manufacturer. Because of that, the radios are considered non-repairable.
“Our mission is to serve the area in fire protection, rescue and other emergency services,” Schreiber said. “With our old radios, we truly felt we weren’t able to live up to the full extent of that mission. We will be serving our community much more reliably with these new radios.”
Hoover Valley Volunteer Fire and EMS serves about 25 square miles of western Burnet County, including Inks Lake and Longhorn Cavern, which together attract more than 270,000 visitors a year.
The community grant is one of a number of grants recently awarded through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which provides economic development and community assistance grants to cities, counties, volunteer fire departments, regional development councils and other nonprofit organizations in LCRA’s wholesale electric and water service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. PEC is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and a partner in the grant program.
Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted July 1-31, 2019. More information is available at
lcra.org/cdpp.
About LCRA
The Lower Colorado River Authority serves customers and communities throughout Texas by managing the lower Colorado River; generating and transmitting electric power; providing a clean, reliable water supply; and offering outdoor adventures at more than 40 parks along the Colorado River from the Texas Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. LCRA and its employees are committed to enhancing the lives of Texans through water stewardship, energy and community services. LCRA was created by the Texas Legislature in 1934. For more information, visit
lcra.org.
Media Contact
Clara Tuma
512–578–3292
clara.tuma@lcra.org
Source: LCRA Business News
