Colorado firefighter repurposes, donates equipment to Mexico
About every five to 10 years, fire departments are required to get new equipment in order to meet regulations, but the equipment being disposed of can still be used. One Boulder firefighter had an idea to use it to help fire departments in Mexico that desperately need both the equipment and training.
The first time he took donated equipment to Puerto Vallarta, he spoke with a captain wearing gear that was 30 years old. The fire department, in great need of newer equipment, couldn't believe he wanted to simply give it to them.
"They were like, 'How much do you want for it?'" said Manny Garcia. "I was like, 'Oh, nothing.'"
For the past eight years, Garcia has been collecting equipment ranging from hoses to air tanks, to protective clothing that local fire departments no longer use.
"I store it at my house, I store it at my shed," said Garcia. "I ended up buying a container. I've been funding it myself for a long time."
On his own time and his own dime, he's been taking the equipment to Mexico.
"It's been such a heartwarming welcome for us," said Garcia. "Now it's extended to over maybe four different states in Mexico."
In February, a group of Boulder and Denver firefighters traveled to Puerto Vallarta to deliver nearly $1 million worth of equipment and invaluable training.
"Manny has committed an incredible amount of time and sacrifice to make this happen," said Boulder Fire Engineer Tony Gamberg, who was a part of the group who traveled to Puerto Vallarta and oversaw training from an engineering perspective.
"This was just a great chance to meet some people from a completely different place and help them out," Gamberg added. "It was probably more rewarding for myself, I feel like, maybe than for them."
"When we become firefighters, we want to help a community," said Garcia. "Sometimes it's your own community, this time we're helping out a community up in Mexico."
Garcia's hope for his nonprofit, 5280 International Firefighter Ops, is to continue to collect donations so he can expand to help more areas internationally.
