When Birmingham Baptist Association (BBA) chose Sept. 11 as the day for its Adopt-A-Station Day, it was to honor and encourage local firefighters and police officers while remembering the sacrifice and bravery of New York City firefighters and police officers Sept. 11, 2001.
But when David Lucas, business administrator at Liberty Park Baptist Church, Vestavia Hills, jumped at the opportunity to participate in the program, it was Oct. 16, 2005, that weighed most heavily on his mind.
That’s the day firefighters from Hoover Fire Station No. 4 pulled Lucas’ son Lee from his burning condominium and saved his life.
For Lucas, this program is about more than cards and cookies. “It teaches gratitude and shows the serious side of the work our protectors do,” he said.
That work continues every day, and for the second year in a row, Birmingham Baptists used the week of Sept. 11 as a time to thank and encourage those protectors.
“It has been a phenomenal program. Churches have really responded to it,” said Mike McLemore, BBA executive director.
More than 20 churches in the Birmingham area participated by preparing snacks and notes of encouragement to take to firefighters and police officers in their community, said Linda Pair, director of church/community missions for BBA.
The association also provided New Testaments designed specifically for firefighters and police officers for churches to leave at the stations.
Pair described the program as a way to “minister to public servants, to make them aware that people are praying for them.”
Although Sept. 11 was the day designated by BBA, churches are encouraged to participate in the ministry at any time.
This year, because Sept. 11 fell on a Tuesday, many churches celebrated the event Sept. 12 so that it could fit into their regular Wednesday night activities.
That’s what Liberty Park Baptist did when 50 of its Girls in Action and Royal Ambassadors marched to a neighboring fire station to deliver homemade goodies and handmade cards.
Lucas noted the church’s involvement teaches local missions to the children.
The church also adopted another fire station and a police station in Vestavia Hills, as well as the Hoover fire station that rescued Lucas’ son.
Lakeside Baptist Church, Birmingham, prepared an entire meal for firefighters Sept. 11, which the staff ate with them.
In Irondale, Baptist churches are continuing to celebrate their police officers beyond Adopt-A-Station Day by joining with other denominations to provide refreshments for an October memorial service held by the area’s police officers.
“This is new ground but we can really see a lot of potential to develop relationships” between churches and with fire and police stations, Pair said.
“[Adopt-A-Station has] given people a way that they can give back. It’s a tangible gesture to say thank you.
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