Ste. Genevieve: Vehicle Purchase Approved For Fire Dept.; Purple Heart Proclamation Made
After discussing the issue with fire chief Kenny Steiger, the Ste. Genevieve Board of Aldermen voted unanimously to approve the purchase of a 2010 Chevrolet Suburban from Richard Stoll for not more than $17,000, at last Thursday’s meeting.
The aldermen had tabled the request at the February 28 meeting, wanting to hear an explanation from Steiger as to why the purchase was necessary.
“A couple of months ago, an alderman contacted me and suggested I look at an SUV on a local lot,” Steiger said. “He thought it would be a benefit to our department. My staff and I looked at it and drove it and determined it was actually too small a vehicle. … It wasn’t going to be comfortable for long trips.”
He said the department had kept its eyes open for the right vehicle.
He found out about Stoll’s SUV, which he said was in “immaculate” condition, with low mileage.
“This will give us another four-wheel drive [vehicle] for the winter time months,” Steiger said. “It gives us more people-carrying capacity. Right now, with the current car we’re using, we can take four. If we take any more than that, like we do in winter fire school when we take six, it requires a second vehicle, which means we have to take somebody else’s vehicle and pay mileage to that person.”
MAYOR PRESENTS PURPLE HEART PROCLAMATION
Early in the meeting, Mayor Paul Hassler presented Virgil Boyer, commander of American Legion Post 150, with a proclamation naming Ste. Genevieve a Purple Heart City.
The proclamation began by stating the city “has great admiration and the utmost gratitude for its military veteran population” and later noted that “the city of Ste. Genevieve appreciates the sacrifices our Purple Heart recipients made in defending our freedom and believe it is important that we acknowledge them for their courage and show them the honor and support they have earned.”
Boyer brought several fellow Purple Heart recipients with him for the presentation.
“I want to welcome you fine men and women,” Hassler said before reading the proclamation, which also gave the Purple Heart medal’s history.
“That’s for all the veterans,” Boyer said. “That’s why I brought some of the auxiliary ladies here, SAL [Sons of the American Legion] members, Purple Heart recipients. They all had a part in helping the veterans … not only those of us who served, but the ones that were in the background. If it weren’t for them, we couldn’t have done what we did.”
See complete story in the March 20 edition of the Herald.
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