Fire, police battle it out on the court

By Staff
Melissa Cason
Excuse the city's first responders if they were moving a little slower than usual this weekend.
The city's firefighters put their boots and hoses aside Thursday night long enough to take on the city's police department in a charity basketball game.
The event was a fundraiser for the fire department's Fill the Boot campaign to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Fire Chief Joe Mansell said the event brought in $441 for MDA, which is a charity the fire department raises money for year round.
"This was a pretty good fundraiser," Mansell said. "We aren't done. We are collecting money this weekend at the Watermelon Festival."
During the game, door prizes were given away, and there was a half court shoot, which no one made during halftime.
As for the action on the court, it was eight members of the police department against 15 members of the fire department.
The fire department defeated the police department 51 to 39.
"We thank the police department for stepping up to help us with this fundraiser," Mansell said. "From the minute it was mentioned, they were on board. We could not have done it without their participation."
Mansell said the last time the firefighters took on police officers on the court was 17 years ago.
"When I first joined the department, we had a game like this but not since," Mansell said. "I'd like to do something like this every year. It's good for the departments and the city."
Mansell said the department could not have done this without the support of the mayor and council, as well as local sponsors.