( Apologies ahead … this got long winded …
I have the pleasure and blessing to be able to spend a good amount of time in Ronald, Washington. Ronald is a small – very small – town in Eastern Washington. Tucked in the mountains and foothills, pleasant river and lake … a handful of houses, a post office, a tavern/restaurant, a general store, and a fire station. That’s about it.
This is an area of great seasonal forest fires. A few years back, we were evacuated with a very large fire racing down the valley. We raced to get to our property to move out what we could. The Sheriffs had a roadblock a couple of miles from where we needed to go. They let us go … but with a stern warning: “If you see flames, turn and go. Know this: you are on your own. If you get in trouble – basically, you’re on your own.” We were in-and-out in record time.
A great, defensive rally of our local fire departments (several involved in this one), and certainly God’s oversight … all proved to protect the area … though, others nearby were not so blessed. Around here, the local firefighters are generally considered heroes.
I was thinking about little Ronald. Nearby towns are well-known as day-trip targets and even as destinations – owing to legendary restaurants, nearby golfing, shops … those places have the typical hats and t-shirts available. And, that’s fine and the way it should be. Anyways, one day, for no particular reason, I was thinking about our quiet Ronald … it’s not really know for it’s tourism, but is does get a lot of folks moving through – a lot – up and down the valley road (903).
I came up with the catchline “Ronald … Gateway to Someplace”. It just gave me a chuckle. And, actually, most-everywhere is a “gateway” … if you drive thru town this way, you get to someplace. Drive the other way through town, you get to another. Drive far enough, most towns are the “gateway” to … Niagra Falls, the Grand Canyon, Key West …. 🙂 I like that concept. So why not Ronald? Yes, I say.
Now, I’m not in all this to make a living. I’m interested in fun, and in this case, supporting community. So, it came to me, why not share profits (and, in this case, a laughably small profit) with … who? I know, those great firefighters who take such great care of us! So, I thought I’d give about (I’m not going to get precise … don’t have time or interest) 50% of the profits to local firefighters. Now, you cannot do a tax-deductible donation thing with them … doesn’t work. So, next best thing – I’ll use half of the profit to have fun, in the form of a box of donuts or, if I sell two or three frames, maybe even a pizza.
That’s the thought at this point. I intend to talk with someone at the local fire district and make sure this is workable … but it’s such a little thing, and simply a small, fun way to acknowledge and thank our firefighters.
Simple.
We’ll see … 🙂
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