The Stuart Rescue Department recently received a donation from a local church.

Rescue Director Sean Bovinett says that the vacation bible school students at the First Congregational Church hold a competition every year, where the boys and girls see how much money each group can raise. He explains that at the end of the vacation bible school, the money is tallied, and donated to a cause that’s agreed upon by the children, and this year they decided to keep it local, donating approximately $747.

Bovinett shares what it means to receive donations and support from local groups.

“It’s huge. Whether your donation is $7 or $700 some dollars, it really makes an impact going towards helping grow the department. Things are really expensive, and we are funded by the city, so the city helps out a lot. We do receive revenue from calls that we run, but there’s a lot of things that maybe don’t make it to the list of necessities that the donations really help get in front of the department.”

Bovinett mentions that currently he’s been using donated funds to help offset costs for individuals taking certification and recertification courses for their emergency medical technician licenses. He adds that this is something the department does to try and help with recruitment.