History

The Washington State Council of Fire Fighters was formed in March, 1987.. Our plan was to provide funding for burn research and public burn prevention education in Washington. With the University of Washington and the Harborview Medical Center right in our own backyard, it made perfect sense. Burn research is done in these two facilities on a regular basis, and who better than fire fighters to carry the banner for these needs.

We raised money in the usual ways, holding fund raising activities in local restaurants, getting support from local fire department unions with golf tournaments or other events and seeking support from anyone who would listen. We steadfastly refused to do any form of telemarketing.

In 1996 we began to produce a calendar. That year it was merely a poster. It was a huge success and the following year we produced a full sized wall calendar featuring Washington State fire fighters. Our goal was to have it be tasteful, with just enough sex appeal to garner the attention of the consumers. Unlike other calendars featuring males, we did not portray our subjects in unbelievable situations, but rather displayed a representative array of real fire fighters. One local newspaper referred to it as “more like a Happy Meal than a platter of beefcake”.

The judging events, where the fire fighters are selected to appear on calendars, are held every May. Judges come from two sources. First is the media. Second, and most important, are judges who buy the opportunity to be a judge at one of many charity auctions sponsored by any number of other charities. We offer the judge spot and split fund it with the other charity, thus bringing in donations for up to 20 other worthwhile organizations.

In 2003 we were told that our calendar was the number one selling fire fighter calendar in America. That was a statement we could neither prove nor disprove, but we do know it is sold in every state and continues to have a good following.

We have funded many worthwhile burn research programs and have expanded our mission to include sponsoring children with burn injuries to a week long summer camp, provide funding for smoke detector programs for low income and elderly residents, sponsored a fire safety museum and burn prevention kits for new mothers. Many of the research projects we supported have gone on to get national funding in amounts much greater than we could ever provide. Our calendar continues to be our number one source of income and we plan to continue producing it as long as we have fire fighters willing to donate their time to the cause.

We welcome the support of companies and individuals who would like to be a part of our efforts to reduce the pain and suffering of those who have sustained burn injuries as well as supporting burn prevention programs.