SUMTER, S.C. — The Sumter Fire Department is ready to turn on its Christmas lights after over a month of work.
For Sumter Fire Department Chief Carl Ford, it's a way to connect with residents.
"This is a project of love toward the community," Ford explained about the month of hard work spent decorating the station with lights.
Now, the time has finally come to turn them all on for the whole community to see.
"It just fills my heart with joy and love to know, to see that we can give out something to the public that kind of brings a smile on everybody's face at a happy time of year," Ford said.
Firefighters have been busy building figurines and stringing lights all throughout the station and the training facility.
"My guys, they’re like Christmas elves they’re out they’re putting it together like they were putting together toys putting it up for everybody," Ford explained. "They would go fight a fire or go to a wreck or rescue somebody, they come back and they go right back to work putting it up because they love doing this type of stuff."
For Captain Matthew Ray, it’s about more than just getting in the holiday spirit. It's about connecting with the community.
"We get not only the opportunity to maybe even let them come out and see the Christmas lights, but they also interact with the firefighters, they interact with the fire trucks," Ray said.
After decorating for the first time last year, the department saw the positive reaction from community members.
"A lot of the neighborhoods around us said you know they come by they said ‘You all have really brought Christmas to us," Ford explained.
This year, they’re making the display bigger and better in hopes that more residents will come by to see the display.
"That’s what we’re here for. We’re here for the public," Ray told me. "We’re here to serve the public, we’re here to help the public and we want them to be involved in everything we do."
Those lights will turn on for the first time around dark on Thanksgiving night and will be up until Jan. 1.
"Christmas is something that’s shared by everybody whether you believe a certain way or not, but everybody loves the feeling of love and that's what Christmas is all about," Ford said.
This is a project of love toward the community
It just fills my heart with joy and love to know, to see that we can give out something to the public that kind of brings a smile on everybody's face at a happy time of year
A lot of hard work and hours went into it. And they did most of this on their you know down time from fighting fires and everything
They would go fight a fire or go to a wreck or rescue somebody, they come back and they go right back to work putting it up because they love doing this type of stuff
A lot of the neighborhoods around us said you know they come by they said ‘you all have really brought Christmas to us’
Christmas is something that’s shared by everybody whether you believe a certain way or not, but everybody loves the feeling of love and that's what Christmas is all about