The Taborton Volunteer Fire Company was organized by Louis Ronzitti in 1958 and received it’s incorporation certificate on January 23, 1959. The 49 charter members elected Russell Dingman Jr. as their first Chief.
The land that was used for the first building was donated by George Carr and housed 1 fire truck for the Sand Lake Fire District 3. Until that garage was built the fire truck was housed in a barn next to the church, owned by charter member August Meyers. A second truck would be put into service in the early 1960’s. During the mid 1970’s the company purchased an Agway building and built it with its own work force to be used as a meeting house and banquet hall. This building was eventually torn down to make room for the new station.
The fire service was rapidly changing and, by the late 1980’s, the company added a rescue squad to better serve the needs of the community. The company put an addition onto the fire engine bays to house this third piece of apparatus. In 1991 the fire district purchased its first new fire truck, an International custom engine/tanker. This new truck and any future apparatus to be purchased had outgrown the engine bays, so by the mid 1990’s the company started planning to build a new facility. With the hard work and cooperation between the company and the fire district, the new station was dedicated on Sept. 28, 2002. In 2005, we purchased (for $1.00) a used ambulance from Sand Lake Ambulance to be used as an emergency response vehicle (Rescue 37).
Today, there are many new apparatus. The company purchased a new piece of apparatus (37-6) in 2016, which was dedicated to past chief Gene Vanvalkenburgh. This truck serves the district as its first due engine for most calls. In 2021, the company purchased a replacement for Rescue 37, which was delivered in 2022. First Response-37 was put into service in June of 2022 and serves as a much more versatile and dynamic vehicle that responds to calls.
Taborton Fire Company responds to all emergencies in the Sand Lake Fire District 3, which is approximately the eastern third of the Town of Sand Lake. We are called for mutual aid to the surrounding areas in Berlin and Sand Lake. The members are trained in various areas including: structural fire suppression, wild land fire suppression, water supply operations, auto and bus accident extrication, ice rescue, CPR/ AED’s (defibrillator), basic life support (EMT’s), helicopter landing zone set up, farm accident rescue and much more. We are dispatched to various medical emergency calls with Sand Lake Ambulance within our district to begin emergency medical treatment prior to their arrival.
The company has come along way since it was formed in 1958. We would like to thank the residents of Taborton, all members of the Taborton Vol. Fire Company, members of the Averill Park/Sand Lake Fire Department, members of the West Sand Lake Fire Department, and members of the Sand Lake Ambulance for helping us become the organization we are today.