The fire company is at your door: the calendar drive, a new chief, and the whole fall and winter schedule

If a firefighter knocked on your door Saturday with a calendar, that was the Speigletown District Volunteer Fire Company’s annual drive, which is also the one time a year the company puts its news in writing and hands it to every household. The letter, signed by President Justin Bounds and Chief Dean Rysedorph, is worth reading past the donation line. Here is what is in it.

A new chief

The company made the leadership change official: Larry Funk has stepped down after five years as chief, and Dean Rysedorph, who served as assistant chief under him, is now chief. The letter thanks Funk for his service and wishes Rysedorph well in the role. Readers of our fire department page will know Funk’s tenure for the grant-writing that saved district taxpayers several million dollars on equipment; the page’s officer list has already been updated.

The 1936 LaFrance needs work

The restored 1936 American LaFrance 450, the engine that rides in parades and car shows and has carried departed members on their final trip, “now requires extensive engine, transmission, and brake repairs,” the letter says. Parts and qualified shops for a 90-year-old truck are scarce and expensive. The company is asking for donations designated specifically for the restoration, on top of the regular calendar gift. The October 24 chicken BBQ’s proceeds are going to the same cause.

The dates

• Monthly all-you-can-eat breakfasts ($12 adults, $6 children, under 5 free, per the company’s October 6 post) start Sunday, October 11 and run the second Sunday of each month through the Mother’s Day breakfast on May 9. The company’s standing hours are 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the station.
• Chicken BBQ, Saturday, October 24, pickup 4 to 6 p.m., pre-order only. Tickets are on sale now; our BBQ story has the menu and how to order.
• Santa tours the district Sunday, December 6, visiting with children and collecting new, unopened toys for the company’s Toys for Tots drive. Have a toy by the door.
• Kids’ Christmas Party, Saturday, December 19 at the firehouse, with Santa back for anyone who missed him on the 6th.

All four are on the events page and in the calendar feed.

How to give

The calendar drive is the company’s biggest fundraiser of the year, paying for equipment and training. The letter comes with a return slip for checks to Speigletown Fire Company, 146 Speigletown Road, Troy, NY 12182, and QR codes for PayPal and Venmo (the company’s Venmo is @Speigletown_Vol_Fire_Co). If you missed the knock, any of those works, and a note on the memo line can steer a gift to the LaFrance.

They are also hiring, in the volunteer sense

The letter closes with the pitch every small department has to make these days: the company needs people, and not only interior firefighters. Social members run the breakfasts, the BBQ and the Christmas party. If you have ever thought about it, stop by the firehouse on a drill night or flag down a member in town. “There’s a place for everyone at Speigletown Fire Company,” the letter says, and the schedule above is the proof.

Source: the Speigletown District Volunteer Fire Company’s 2026 calendar drive letter, delivered to district residents the weekend of October 3, signed by President Justin Bounds and Chief Dean Rysedorph. Breakfast hours are from the company’s published schedule. Event times for December 6 and 19 were not in the letter; we will add them when the company posts them.