Firefighters at the 51st Street Fire Station in Sunnyside will now be able to get extra training thanks to a donation from a group of local bars and restaurants.
On July 25, Sunnyside’s Boulevard Bars, a group of 10 bars and restaurants on and around Queens Boulevard, presented Engine 325/Ladder 163 of the 51st Street Fire Station with a $3,000 check.
The money was raised in March through the Leary Firefighters Foundation during the group’s Irish Music Festival. The event, sponsored by Guinness, featured live Irish music at the participating bars.
Actor Denis Leary started the Leary Firefighters Foundation in 2000 to raise funds for fire departments to get the best equipment, technology and training.
“Such enthusiastic support from everyone in the community made it possible for us to present Engine 325/Ladder 163 with a check for $3,000 that will go toward helping the firefighters with their training at the firehouse,” said Melissa Navia, writer and social media manager for Sunnyside’s Boulevard Bars.
Jim Duff, captain of Ladder Company 163, said the money will help build a bailout wall in the firehouse’s backyard, where firefighters will be able to practice jumping out of windows using a personal safety system.
Members of Sunnyside’s Boulevard Bars include The Courtyard, Bar 43, Maggie Mae’s, PJ Horgan’s, Sidetracks, Arriba Arriba, Bliss Street Station, McGuinness Pub, Molly Bloom’s and The Gaslight.
“Sunnyside’s Boulevard Bars was created out of a desire by local bar and restaurant owners to engage the neighborhood through year-round events and give back to organizations in the area whenever possible,” said Navia.
All the money raised at the group’s next event, the Halfway to St. Patrick’s Day Music Festival on September 7, will go towards the Sunnyside/Woodside Boys & Girls Club.
RECOMMENDED STORIES
