Time to pick up your firefighters’ calendar

It might be hard to keep track of the specific dates, there are widespread reports that the photos are somewhat distracting, but nobody’s complaining. It’s all for charity.

The biennial Prince George Firefighters’ Calendar is ready for pickup. Get ‘em while they’re hot.

All the money raised by these 1,000 calendars goes to the BC Professional Firefighter Burn Fund Association for the many ways they support the victims of burns in this province.

“In the past, the money went to Prince George’s commitment to the provincial Burn Fund Centre, were we funded an accommodation suite, but that commitment has been met,” said Brian Burleigh of the Prince George Fire Rescue Service. “There are approximately 3,900 members of the professional association from B.C. and Yukon.

“The funding goes to the important medical needs at the burn unit at Vancouver General Hospital and BC Children’s Hospital, because those are the facilities where the severe cases from all over the province get transferred, so even if you are from Prince George, that is where the treatment is centralized.

“We also support the Burn Fund Centre because it is the all-important home away from home for victims and their families. These places help all of B.C., young and old.”

The calendar is in the creative hands of professional photographer Philomena Hughes, one of the city’s most lauded portrait photographers and arts advocates.

Hughes volunteers the time required to design the scenarios, set up the shoot, and carry out the photography. Each photo is of a real Prince George firefighter depicting the physique reflective of their training in life-saving skills.

“These are all staged photos,” said Burleigh, who has been one of the photo subjects in the past but is doing liaison work this year to arrange the making and marketing of the calendar. “We typically give the 12 firefighters involved about two and a half or three months’ notice. They set up a fitness routine and monitor their diet so they are in tiptop shape, and we also talk with Philomena about where to do the photos and what it should look like.”

This year the theme of the photos does double duty. They are all shot inside some of the city’s top restaurants, drawing attention to the fine culinary culture of Prince George while reminding the public that kitchens are where a lot of heat is concentrated.

Yes, that’s a double entendre. These photos are not joyless clinical still-life snapshots. They also, in a good-natured way, intend to throw off some inner sparks as well.

The photos were taken at Betulla Burning, Black Clover, Crossroads, Northern Lights Estate Winery, Twisted Cork and some work was also done in-house at Hughes’ studio.

The calendars retail for $20 each.

They are available at Canadian Tire, both Simply Beautiful Jewelry Design & Clothing locations, Victory Paints, and there will be a sales table at Studio Fair where about onethird of the calendars sold in one weekend during their last edition.