Most of the issues facing the LSA today are the same issues with new details that faced the newly forming LSA Board in 1992: public water, natural gas, development, water quality, crime and stormwater management.
Going way back...
Fire protection around Lake Samish was non-existent until about 1957, when about 25 to 30 families got together and formed Fire District #9. The construction of Interstate 5 was starting and the Lake Samish Community Hall was lost to this new North-South route. Mr. & Mrs. Wes Mellott and Mr. & Mrs. Pitt White donated land for the Fire Hall on West Lake Samish Drive and the Trustees for the Community Hall gave the new district the money to start the construction of the present Fire Hall, which was constructed totally with volunteer labor……mostly the volunteer firemen and a lot of money and help from the community.
The Ladies Auxiliary was started in 1958 with the purpose of raising money for the Volunteer Fire Department. In addition to fixing lunches for the crews working on the Fire Hall every weekend, the Auxiliary initiated many money-raising projects, such as card parties, box socials and smorgasbord dinners to art shows, plant sales, and bazaars. They also planned parties for the neighborhood children on Halloween, Christmas and an egg hunt in the spring around Easter. The Auxiliary also published a newsletter each month, which was supported by coffee parties.
Because of the communication in those days, Auxiliary members manned the telephones for the fire calls, which came out from the main station in Bellingham. Prospect Street Station would call 3 homes at Lake Samish and those 3 homes would, in turn, call as many as 10 firemen to get a crew together for that one call. Later, with the purchase of Plectrons for each home, the line of communication was improved.
In the 1970’s, because there were no men at home in the daytime, the first all-women fire crew was formed. The women took the fire training with men of Lake Samish and Alger, but women answered the calls as an all-women crew. Now the crews are co-ed.
The Auxiliary was disbanded in the early 1990’s and the Lake Samish Association was formed with the idea of supporting the Fire Department and keeping the community informed on issues of the day with the newsletter.
See some pictures below:
Circa 1960 - Construction to begin on new fire hall on West Lake Samish Dr.
L to R: Bud Nichols, Jim Browne, Ted Bajema, and Fred Helsley
Circa 1960 - Fire Truck
Circa 1960 - Fire Truck
Ladies Auxiliary plant sale to raise money to purchase Plectrons
L L to R: Rita Wefer, N/A, N/A
Above pictures were from the Bellingham Herald's Jack Carver Collection, Whatcom Museum of History and Art
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