Waxhaw News - The Official Community Publication - Waxhaw, NC Waxhaw News July_August 2017

JULY/AUGUST
Volume 28 ● Number 4
of a fi re. This is not lip service for Riggins and her
fi refi ghter husband. They sometimes wake their
two young children in the middle of the night for
fi re drills. They test them: “How do you get out?
Where will we meet outside? What would you do
if the back gate is locked?”
The line between family and community blurs a
bit for these brave men and women. Riggins says,
“We’re here to help everyone, not only in the
worst times, but at all times.”
Waxhaw Firefi ghters’ Drive Stoked not by Flames,
but by a Passion for Community Safety
On the morning of September 11, 2001, Ashley
Riggins was hanging out with her best friend at
home in Charlotte. She was 18 years old, strug-
gling to fi gure out what to do with her life.
She got her answer when she turned on the
television. Like so many of us, Riggins was hor-
rifi ed by what she saw happening in New York,
Washington, DC and Pennsylvania. The experi-
ence aff ected Riggins deeply. “I just wanted to
do something,” she recalls. “I had to be involved
somehow.”
On weekends, it’s just two employees.
The rest of the time, the Fire Depart-
ment must rely on volunteers. “The de-
partment has really good people wheth-
er they’re paid or not,” says Waxhaw
Fire Chief Gregory Sharpe. “Our volun-
teers are fantastic. They’re doing it out
of the goodness of their hearts. They put
their lives on the line for the communi-
ty. And they really get nothing back.”
Despite its name, the Waxhaw Volunteer Fire De-
partment is not part of the Town of Waxhaw. It’s a
separate entity. The Department covers Waxhaw,
as well as more than 20 miles of unincorporated
Union County. The Department is also incredibly
short-staff ed. There are four employees at the
ready, Monday through Friday, 6am to 6pm. Of course the Fire Department’s job is
to put out fi res. But its deeper mission
is to prevent them. Riggins is helping
lead community outreach and education
eff orts. She encourages every resident
to check smoke detectors monthly, and
establish household escape plans in case
A month later, she signed up to be a volunteer
fi refi ghter. Today, Ashley Riggins is the newly
appointed, Waxhaw Fire Marshal. Chief Sharpe is clearly proud. He esti-
mates that this past May, his fi refi ghters
had a response time of just under 5
minutes. The National Fire Protection
Association’s goal is less than 4 minutes.
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