Fire Station 69 Holds Annual Open House

Wearing his pint-size firefighter jacket and fire hat, Benjamin Branch-Winic, 5, climbs up into the fire truck’s tiller bucket, looks down and gives his father a big smile.

“This is a dream come true for him because he dreams of being a fireman when he gets older,” said Brian Winic, Benjamin’s dad. “He wears that hat every day--he even wears it to bed at night.”

Benjamin and his dad were at  Saturday for its open house. This annual event gives kids the opportunity to climb on the fire trucks, pet Smokey the fire dog and talk to their heroes--local firefighters.

“We do this every year just to educate the public about what we do and how we live,” said Capt. Mike Ketaily. “It’s a great day for the kids. Some of these kids will remember this forever.”

Most of the kids wanted to spend some quality time with Smokey, the Dalmatian that lives at Station 69 and is trained to help the firefighters.

“We take Smokey to all the special events that we go to,” said Firefighter Darnell Tolbert. “I think he’s the last fire dog in the city.”

Sue Pascoe, a reporter for the Palisadian-Post, was given the title of Honorary Fire Chief for the day because of her support for the station.

“She gave a speech thanking the fire station for honoring her and she also talked about the current budget cuts we’re going through,” said Battalion Chief Jim Gaffney. “Sue realizes that there are other ways to save money besides what has been proposed.”

Fire Station 69, along with other Los Angeles area stations, is in the process of being . Staffing will be reduced and with an attached water tank, is scheduled to be shut down on due to the cuts.