EngineProudly serving since 1950
Neighbors
answering
the call.
An all-volunteer company protecting the families, businesses, and future of Stuarts Draft, Virginia.
100% volunteer
Ready to serve · Ready to respond
Built by this community
Ordinary people.
Extraordinary commitment.
The Stuarts Draft Volunteer Fire Company was founded by men and women from this neighborhood—people who dedicate their time and experience to protecting your family, your business, and your home.
Engineers, mechanics, plumbers, accountants, students, business owners, law enforcement officers, electricians, consultants, and technicians have all chosen to serve without compensation. Different skills. One purpose: caring for the community we share.
Read our history
Apparatus review
Prepared for the next call.
A working fleet supported by generations of care, maintenance, training, and community investment.
Engine
Engine
Engine
Tanker
Brush unit
Utility
Response unitHeritage apparatus
The equipment that started the story.
In 1950, 47 neighbors agreed to assume responsibility for a 1939 Chevrolet fire truck purchased from the Forestry Service for $525.
1939 ChevroletOriginal Unit 1
1949 CrosleyHistoric apparatus
Volunteer with us
There is a place for you here.
Protecting a community takes people willing to train, help, organize, maintain, educate, and show up.
Come by any Monday evening118 Draft Avenue, Stuarts Draft
Junior membership
For ages 16–17. Answer calls, take training classes, and participate within age and labor-law restrictions.
Senior membership
Answer fire and rescue calls, train, drive apparatus when qualified, and help lead company activities.
Support membership
Help with administration, fundraising, maintenance, station projects, public education, and non-emergency work.
Read “The Volunteer Fireman”⌄
Volunteer firefighters are a breed unto themselves.
Whoever heard of a person willing to be on twenty-four-hour duty without pay for the privilege of protecting a neighbor’s property?
Whoever heard of someone who will dash from work and ride a fire wagon to an alarm—risking life and exhausting themselves—not for money, but because they believe in serving their community?
Whoever heard of someone who will give up an evening with family to learn how to serve their fellow citizens?
Look around our firehouse. You will see people who care what happens to their neighbors, their community, and their country.
Support your volunteer fire company
Help keep Stuarts Draft ready.
Every donation supports the all-volunteer neighbors who protect local families and businesses. Your generosity helps the company stay prepared and continue a tradition of service that began in 1950.
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The company’s Square donation link will be connected here.
100%Volunteer service.
Community supported.
Community supported.
Home fire safety
Small habits save lives.
Prevention starts before an alarm. Use these practical reminders to help protect your home and the people inside it.
If there is a fire:Get out, stay out, and call 911.
Smoke alarms
Install alarms on every level, inside bedrooms, and outside sleeping areas. Test them monthly.
Cooking safety
Stay in the kitchen while frying, grilling, or broiling. Keep anything flammable away from heat.
Heating equipment
Keep a three-foot safety zone around space heaters, fireplaces, furnaces, and stoves.
Electrical safety
Replace damaged cords, avoid overloaded outlets, and use listed products as intended.
Dryer vents
Clean the lint filter after every load and keep the venting system clear and connected.
Escape planning
Know two ways out when possible, choose an outside meeting place, and practice together.
Our history
From a town alarm to a company of 47.
The company grew from neighbors responding with whatever they had into an organized volunteer force with a station, apparatus, and a lasting promise to serve.
James Bolick built the small community’s first recorded piece of fire apparatus.
The earliest fire found in available records struck Stuarts Draft Mill on August 22.
A meeting was held to organize a fire company, leading to hydrants, hose, and equipment.
Forty-seven people formed the Volunteer Fire Company and took responsibility for its first truck.
Volunteer labor and community support built the company’s first firehouse.
The company moved into its current home at 118 Draft Avenue.
Read the full early history⌄
The railroad arrived in 1882 and helped establish the town along Route 608. Around 1910, a large rim—believed to have come from a train—was used to sound the alarm when fire threatened the village. A two-wheeled hose cart and an apparatus built by James Bolick in 1900 became the community’s earliest tools.
The first fire found in available records was at Stuarts Draft Mill on August 22, 1916. A cannery burned in 1920. In 1922, fire spread from the J.H. Weaver Produce House to a store and nearby home. On June 4, 1930, a disastrous fire destroyed businesses and buildings across the upper end of the village. The People’s Bank suffered extensive damage in 1942, and a later winter barn fire reinforced the need for local firefighting equipment.
On March 13, 1942, a meeting was held to organize a fire company, with O.R. Engleman leading and Pilson Cohron serving as secretary and treasurer. The effort produced two hydrants, hose, and additional equipment. Schoolchildren contributed $5.35. The organization met again in 1946, purchased more hose, and obtained a chemical tank with help from Augusta County.
On June 7, 1950, 47 people formed the Volunteer Fire Company and agreed to pay for a 1939 Chevrolet truck that the Ruritans had purchased from the Forestry Service for $525. A nearly identical truck followed about a year later. The first firehouse was built in 1951 on land obtained from Mrs. Oscar Cohron, with volunteer labor and financial help from the community.
B.B. Kube joined Stuarts Draft’s firefighting effort soon after arriving in 1913. For years, he took fire calls at his home across from the station, ran across the street, and sounded the siren. His faith and dedication reflect the spirit that has sustained this company for generations.
Honor & tradition
The meaning behind the uniform.
Fire service traditions carry stories of courage, service, faith, sacrifice, and remembrance from one generation to the next.
01The Fireman’s Badge⌄
The Maltese Cross is a symbol of protection and a badge of honor. Its story reaches back to the Knights of Saint John, who risked their lives to save fellow crusaders from fire. Because the knights lived for centuries on Malta, the emblem became known as the Maltese Cross.
For firefighters, the cross signifies courage and a willingness to risk one’s life for another. Its four arms represent Prudence, Temperance, Justice, and Fortitude.
Adapted from Aaron Feldman, Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services.
02Bagpipe Tradition⌄
Bagpipes at fire department funerals trace to Irish and Scottish immigrants who brought the pipes to America. At funerals for fallen firefighters, the pipes gave grief a voice while preserving the dignity of the occasion.
Families of firefighters from every background soon embraced the tradition. Today, the pipes are a universal fire-service symbol used to honor fallen heroes.
Excerpted and adapted from Ohio Fire Chief, July 1997.
03The Last Alarm⌄
My father was a fireman; he drove a big red truck.
And when he’d go to work each day, he’d say, “Mother, wish me luck.”
My father lost his life that night when the floor gave way below.
I wondered why he’d risked his life for someone he did not know.
But now I truly realize the greatest gift a man can give
is to lay his life upon the line so someone else might live.
Jim Martinez, IAFF 7th District · Dedicated to the children of fallen firefighters
04Why Fire Trucks Are Red⌄
Fire trucks have six wheels and six firefighters; six plus six is twelve. There are twelve inches to a foot. A foot is a ruler. Queen Elizabeth was a ruler. The Queen Elizabeth sailed the seven seas. Seas have fish. Fish have fins. The Finns fought the Russians. The Russians are red. Fire trucks are always rushin’—and that’s why fire trucks are red!
A bit of classic firehouse humor.
05The Fireman’s Prayer⌄
“When I am called to duty, God, wherever flames may rage, give me the strength to save a life, whatever be its age.”
May I be alert, hear the weakest shout, fulfill my calling, guard my neighbors, and protect their property. And if I am to lose my life, please bless and protect my family.
The Fireman’s Prayer
2026 leadership
Officers serving the company.
Operational and company officers who give their time to lead, train, coordinate, and keep the department ready.
ChiefAdam Hallberg
Assistant ChiefJames Summy
CaptainKervin Yoder
LieutenantKenny Miller
SergeantRandall Chupp
Training SergeantWesley Miller
PresidentBrent Chupp
Vice PresidentLoren Miller
SecretaryHarvey Hostetler
TreasurerAnthony Miller
ReporterChase Fretwell
Contact the company
Our doors are open
to the community.
For membership information, station business, or non-emergency questions, call, email, or visit the firehouse.