![FUNDING: Raglan RFB captain Gareth Sutton [centre] with Panthers Bathurst general manager John Fearnley and marketing manager Ben McGrath.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/xry9xtRQu9u36zRV2j5976/ef18004e-2079-48f3-b1e9-fd9c1611d65b.JPG/r0_0_4608_2591_w576_h298_fmax.webp "FUNDING: Raglan RFB captain Gareth Sutton [centre] with Panthers Bathurst general manager John Fearnley and marketing manager Ben McGrath.")
Panthers Bathurst has delivered a welcome donation to the Raglan Rural Fire Brigade [RFB] as a show of appreciation for their efforts to keep the community safe.
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The club handed over the $10,000 donation yesterday as part of a Panthers Group initiative to give back to the local community.
Panthers Bathurst general manager John Fearnley said the Raglan RFB was chosen on account of their strong base of volunteers and outstanding efforts during last summer's bushfires.
"Our volunteer firefighters need all the help they can get, especially following the disastrous situation they were up against last summer," Mr Fearnley said.
"The club's head chef is a firefighter, and because the Raglan RFB is predominantly comprised of volunteers, we feel they're very deserving of this grant."
Raglan RFB captain Gareth Sutton said the grant will help replenish supplies and resources from what has been described widely as the worst bushfire season on record.
"Because it's such a big donation, there's the possibility we'll divide it among other local fire brigades," Mr Sutton said.
"We're planning to meet in the coming days to determine where the funds will go."
Mr Sutton said last summer's bushfires kept the Raglan RFB on the go for most of the season as they battled to bring the confronting situation under control.
"We did 75 days straight at one stage, with two trucks out most days," he said.
"Our crews worked a 16-hour shift on Christmas Day, and many of us are still struggling to comprehend the situation we faced last summer."
On a positive note, Mr Sutton said the severity of last summer has encouraged more volunteers to enlist, with the Raglan RFB now sporting over 90 firefighters.
"The Raglan RFB has picked up another 30-odd firefighters since last summer, and we're in the process of training them up," he said.
"We've had decent rain, but that means decent growth, and we could see lots of grass fires break out again if drier periods return."
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Sam Bolt
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
