The Jonesburg-High Hill Fire Protection District received a 50-50 Volunteer Fire Assistance Matching Funds grant from the Missouri Department of Conservation that helped the organization purchase new equipment.

The fire district purchased $7,747.43 of equipment that included 11 rakes, seven shovels, 12 battery-operated leaf blowers and back pack pumps and two volt-to-volt inverters and was reimbursed $3,873.72 by MDC. The fire district was notified in November that it received the grant.

“We had to submit dollar figures to apply for the grant, but when we got approved for it, prices went up,” assistant fire chief Jeff Edwan said. “They had a way that you can submit to get new approval for price adjustment. But we bought all of the Milwaukee tools and shovels from the Home Depot store in Wentzville. Monica Claus was the pro account sales associate. She was able to waive the difference of the cost, which saved us about $168. We didn’t have to file new paperwork.”

After receiving the grant, the fire district had a quartet of sisters from Jonesburg to help out with projects with the new equipment. They were Kelsey, Kaitlyn, Savannah and Isabella Miller. Kelsey will be a freshman at the University of Missouri-Columbia this fall, while Kaitlyn (freshman), Savannah (sophomore) and Isabella (junior) are students at Warrenton High School.

“They will make somebody a good husband someday,” Edwan said. “They can operate on their own. I watched them grow up. They were driving when they were 7-8 years old. They were driving tractors and moving stuff. They’re not afraid of work. They’re not afraid of getting their hands dirty. They enjoy it.”

Isabella said she and her sisters enjoyed their time helping out the fire district.

“It feels good knowing that what you’re doing is going to help the community,” she said.

The Miller sisters participate in the FFA and 4-H organizations, and their father, Bill, does 4-H welding for the Warren County R-III School District. The girls do chores such as cutting hay, driving tractors and raising goats and bunnies.

“Years ago, the Montgomery County School District FFA did some work (for us),” Edwan said. “They built some deer racks for us. So I thought we should get more involved with Warren County because we do cover them. I live in Warren County. The girls and their parents live in Warren County. So I knew their dad Bill was doing the welding portion of the 4-H. So I approached them about it, saying that this would be a good project.”

Edwan said the fire district is thrilled to receive the new equipment.

“These are all battery powered tools,” he said. “So they’re greatly going to improve our natural fire fighting abilities. The backpacks themselves that carry the water are about 10 pounds lighter than the ones we used to carry. The blowers are easy to handle.”

The fire district, which has headquarters in Jonesburg and High Hill, covers both Montgomery and Warren counties. It also received two new trucks and an American Rescue Plan grant from Warren County.

“What a lot of people don’t realize about the Jonesburg-High Hill Fire District is when someone says Jonesburg, they think Montgomery County,” Edwan said. “But this fire district covers 61 square miles of Warren County and 59 square miles of Montgomery County. So we have good resources to tab from. We have two great counties that we work with.”