ANSELMO – April’s Cooksley Complex Fire spanned two counties, 37,000 acres, and two days: April 13 and 14. Miraculously, no lives were lost, thanks in no small part to the 64 fire departments that worked tirelessly to contain and extinguish the blaze.
The Anselmo community has come together to thank those departments who kept them safe during the two-day disaster with a benefit.
The “4-13 Fire Department Appreciation Event,” named for day one of the fire’s outbreak, will take place during Anselmo’s annual Big Sky Jubilee and promises no shortage of opportunities for community members near and far to show their appreciation for all that the 64 responding departments did during the disaster.
4-13 Appreciation organizer Dave Lamb says that while many departments will be receiving financial help from other sources, the gesture on behalf of his community is the least they can do.
“We’re just trying to show our appreciation to the departments for coming to help. I know they’ll get help from FEMA and others, but this is just to say thank you to them.”
The event will be bookended by auctions: first, a silent auction at 5 p.m., and a live auction at 7:30 p.m. Both will be held at Anselmo’s new fire hall, which is across the street from the town’s old fire hall. Lamb says that items up for auction continue to pour in, even as the event draws closer.
“We’ll have a number of power tools, a load of hay, a catered meal, a gooseneck trailer, some paintings, and a pressure washer. There’s getting to be quite a long list of things that are offered.”
Lamb goes on to say that, remarkably, donations for both auctions are coming in from as far away as several of the 64 departments.
“There are donations and offerings coming in from all over. I went down yesterday to pick up items from Gothenburg, and I know there are donations from Brown and Rock County, and Wheeler County, and places like that. It’s covering a wide area.”
In addition to the auctions, the 4-13 Event also promises a 7 p.m. raffle; prizes will include a customized Henry Golden Boy .22 caliber rifle and a 5-burner Pit Boss gas griddle. Raffle tickets are $20 apiece, and Lamb says they’re available in just about every town in Custer County.
The highlight of the night, however, might be the 6 p.m. prime rib BBQ, cooked up by Three Brothers Catering of Farnam, and provided by a number of sponsors including Tyson, Adams Land & Cattle, and the Nebraska Farm Bureau. While the BBQ during the Big Sky Jubilee usually falls to the Anselmo Fire Department, Lamb says the 4-13 Appreciation Event committee may have other ideas this year.
“Normally, the fire department does all the cooking and serving the meal, but we’re giving them the year off because we’ve got it catered, and the Farm Bureau’s bringing up people to serve. The fire department will be in charge of setup and cleanup, but they won’t have as much work as they usually do.”
The “4-13 Fire Department Appreciation Event” will take place during Anselmo’s Big Sky Jubilee on Saturday, June 17. The event has a Facebook page which is kept up-to-date with auction items and other information. Additionally, Lamb and his team have sent invitations to the event to many of the departments that helped extinguish the Cooksley Complex Fire. A flyer is attached.
