CAMDEN — Camden Fire Department’s Engine 4 and ladder truck are both sporting colorful artistic banners featuring messages about fire prevention, created by local students, as part of a community collaboration among the department and the Camden-Rockport Middle School and Children’s House Montessori School.

The idea of getting kids involved with National Fire Prevention Week to learn more about fire safety and having them transform those messages into illustrations to display on the firetrucks, has been simmering with Camden Fire Chief Chris Farley and Assistant Fire Chief Andrew Lowe.

They decided it was time to move forward with their idea so they reached out to the Camden schools to see if there was any interest with supporting the project.   

In September, when Farley approached the principals at the Camden-Rockport Middle School and the Children's House Montessori School about having the students create banners with fire safety messages, he received a “thumbs up.”

Firefighters then visited the two schools and described the guidelines of the project to the students. They were told that the banners should be colorful and have a clear safety message that is simple, basic and neat.

Assistant Fire Chief Todd Anderson, owner of French and Brawn, donated the rolls of butcher paper for the drawings, and paint and markers were also distributed by the fire department. The students then collected their supplies for the project and found their workspaces where they could unleash their creative juices.

CHRMS principal Jaime Stone said that the students all worked independently on their submissions for “hours and hours,” mostly in their homes. She said that the students are always eager to work with art and this connection with the community is “very exciting” and a positive way for them to support the fire department.

“It’s raising awareness and demystifying firefighting, like it’s okay to activate a fire alarm, which is usually hands off, if there’s an emergency,” said Stone.

The Camden Fire Department received 18 submissions from the students at CRMS and one submission from the Montessori School which was a joint project of the entire student body.

A group of judges met in early October to review the students’ artwork and select the winning submissions. The judges were State Fire Marshal Investigator Mary MacMaster, Camden Town Manager Patricia Finnigan, Camden firefighters Matt Heath and Cheyne Hansen, Rockport Assistant Fire Chief Jon Wickenden, community member and Farnsworth Museum employee Becky Flanagan, along with Farley and Stone.

“The judges were all impressed with the high quality entries and it was a really tough decision to select the winners,” said Farley.

Everyone on the judging team was “sworn to secrecy” while Adventure Advertising in Rockport transformed the winning artwork into all-weather banners to mount on the firetrucks. Firefighters visited both schools in later October to unveil the winning banners and recognize the student winners.  

The winners, all from CRMS, were Ryan Andersen, fifth grade, Rachel Rademacher, seventh grade, and Shauna Murray, eighth grade. They all had their photos taken with firefighters except for Murray, because when it was her turn, they had to dash out of the school to respond to a 911 call.

Maine State Fire Marshal Joe Thomas learned about the project and had this to say. "What a great project. Sounds like a great success story and something the community as a whole can be proud of. Keep up the good work down there!"

Farley said that he hopes to continue the project next year and build upon the enthusiasm from the students by introducing new banners on the fire trucks during National Fire Prevention Week in 2017.

All of the students’ submissions will be on display in the bay at the firehouse on election day, Nov. 8. Farley is encouraging the community to view the drawings when they come to the station to vote.   

Reach Sarah Shepherd at news@penbaypilot.com