By: Michael Wayne O’Neill
Sports Editor
WINGATE – The town of Wingate Volunteer Fire Department was formed in 1948, and will celebrate its 75th anniversary on Saturday, Oct. 7 from noon until 3 p.m. The community is encouraged to come for tours of the station on Saturday. There will be a funnel cake truck on site.
“We’re trying to be not just an open house but a fun environment as well,” said Fire Chief Travis Stegall. “There’s a lot of deep roots here. The people here are… completely committed to our community. They’ll put their life on the line.”
The Wingate Volunteer Fire Department is located at 101 W Wilson St., and started with a 1937 Chevrolet truck. In the 1950’s, they appointed their first fire chief.
When member John Mangum joined the department in 1968, they used “army surplus” trucks.
“As time went on, we were able to get better equipment,” Mangum said. “The equipment has come a long, long way as far as all the equipment we carry on the trucks. It’s no comparison to 1968 and now.”
In 1985, the department implemented a first responder program and cardiopulmonary resuscitation procedures. They began emphasizing public education, rescue, and training around 2005.
“We started getting into vehicle extradition,” Stegall said, “We would have to wait on other departments to come help us because we didn’t have the tools to cut people out of cars. In 2006, we purchased one single tool.”
Stegall said the department responded to their 1,418 call in 2022. They expect to hit the 1,500th call mark by the end of this year.
The Wingate Volunteer Fire Department is focused on swift response and meeting the needs of the people.
“Our community really supports our organization and department,” Stegall said. The department held a celebration on its 50th anniversary and 60th anniversary. Stegall was impressed with “the amount of people that came out and supported us…” He’s hoping for a good turnout again on Saturday when they celebrate 75 years of operation.
Wingate Triangle 