Gunter Volunteer Fire and Rescue is getting $45,000 from the state, part of a $19.6 million round of grants that Texas A&M Forest Service handed out Friday to 518 rural volunteer fire departments.
The grants come from the Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program, a state program dating to 2001 that splits the cost of firefighting equipment and training with volunteer departments. Friday's awards opened the program's 2027 fiscal year.
Gunter's grant falls in the "slip-on unit" category on the agency's funding summary, where each listed department received $45,000. Most other awards on the list were $30,000 for fire and rescue equipment or protective gear, or $15,000 for training aids, though a handful of larger grants went to departments elsewhere in the state for bigger apparatus.
Seven Grayson County departments on the list
The summary names seven departments in Grayson County, with awards totaling $255,000:
- Gunter Volunteer Fire and Rescue: $45,000, slip-on unit
- Preston Volunteer Emergency Services: $45,000, slip-on unit
- Southmayd Fire Department: $45,000, slip-on unit
- Howe Fire Department: $30,000, personal protective equipment
- Gordonville Volunteer Fire Department: $30,000, fire and rescue equipment
- Locust Community Volunteer Fire Department: $30,000, personal protective equipment
- Tom Bean Volunteer Firefighters: $30,000, personal protective equipment
Across the county line, Collin County departments in Nevada, Westminster and Weston each drew $45,000 slip-on awards, and Blue Ridge got $30,000 for protective gear.
