Excerpts from mywebtimes.com:
The Streator Fire Department received a boost toward building its planned regional training center Wednesday.
Bill and Peggy Harrison donated $65,000 to the department, to be used for the construction of a 30-by-30-foot classroom in the spring. This is phase two of a five-year project for the center at the end of 10th Street. Jim and Marjorie Rhodes donated the property for the center earlier this year.
“We were talking about some donation ideas and had been thinking about it for four to five years,” Peggy Harrison said. “We heard the city was getting the land and thought that would be ideal. It will be a real asset to the community.”
“It’s going to help other communities too and law enforcement, it won’t only be for fire training,” Bill Harrison said. “We wanted to try to help Streator in some way. This came about and was a good opportunity to see if they needed help.”
Fire Chief Gary Bird said the classroom will be used for fire and police training, while the rest of the facility will be used for hands-on training.
“(The donation) helps the city by alleviating the cost and will speed up the building of the training center,” Bird said.
