Boot Drive raises over $18K
Ground should be broken for the firefighter memorial in early 2018.
After years of planning and backburner fundraising, the new Rome-Floyd Firefighters Memorial Plaza is on the cusp of becoming reality. The three-day boot drive that firefighters conducted a week ago brought the campaign to within a couple of thousand dollars of the $125,000 goal.
“I want to thank everybody who made a contribution during the boot drive,” said Fire Chief Troy Brock. “We had set a goal of $15,000, and the folks actually contributed $18,241, so that was fantastic. It was definitely more than we expected. We can’t thank everybody enough.”
Firefighters spent three days in front of Kroger and both the East and West Rome Walmarts with boots in hand.
The idea of a firefighters memorial was developed during Bobbie McKenzie’s tenure as chief more than a decade ago. Over the years funds that had been collected from fire inspection fees were partially earmarked for the project.
The city donated property diagonally behind City Hall at the intersection of West Sixth Avenue and West First Street.
The campaign has now raised approximately $123,000, prompting Brock to say with some degree of confidence that ground will be broken for the memorial sometime during the first quarter of 2018.
The memorial plaza will feature a brick paver plaza with a bronze statue of a firefighter. However, the final design for the statue still has not been chosen. Brock said his staff has narrowed it down to a couple of options.
Site work will include grading and the installation of water lines for the landscaping and electrical service for specialized lighting, which Brock said would give the sculptor plenty of time to actually finish the statue which would be the last item to be installed.