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Being a fire volunteer is not difficult, what is difficult is decades of perseverance.
In a small city in the hinterland of the Central Plains, no one knows when it comes to veteran Mr. Tang. He is a restless person who could have enjoyed a free and comfortable life after retirement, but he never stopped and devoted himself to the public welfare cause of voluntary fire safety promotion.
Mr. Tang’s connection with the public welfare cause of fire safety can be traced back to a fire that occurred more than 20 years ago. During the harsh winter, the weather was cold and dripping water turned into ice. A street facing factory building near Mr. Tang’s house suddenly caught fire. In the midst of the fire, several employees were trapped on the third floor, constantly calling for help by the window. At the critical moment of 100000, firefighters rushed over and soaked their combat uniforms with water guns. They bravely rushed into the thick smoke and flames, successfully rescuing all the people in danger.
Careful Mr. Tang noticed that when the team members rushed in to save people, their clothes were soaked through, but when they came out, their clothes had already been baked dry by the flames. What made Grandpa Tang even more heartbroken was that the firefighters holding water guns outside the fire scene had their hands frozen red and adhered to the water guns. The water flowing from the fire helmet turned into long ice strips.
This thrilling firefighting and rescue operation deeply touched Mr. Tang. He gained a new understanding of the dangers of fires and developed a special affection for the firefighters. Since then, Grandpa Tang has resolutely embarked on the path of voluntary fire safety publicity.
“When you just retired, you were idle at home all day, sighing and looking down on nothing. Since you started volunteering for fire safety propaganda, it seems like you’ve been a different person, with endless energy every day.” Tang’s wife, Aunt Xu, often muttered, knowing in her heart that her husband is a restless person. As a former soldier, dedication has long been ingrained in his bones.
In the wind and rain, more than 20 years have passed. Mr. Tang has traveled to every corner of the city streets, towns and villages, and wherever he goes, he sows the seeds of fire safety propaganda. The fire department made a statistics for Mr. Tang: his footprints cover more than 10000 units and over 500 schools throughout the city.
The city is changing, and Mr. Tang’s path of voluntary fire prevention propaganda has not changed; Times are changing, and Tang’s dream of voluntary fire safety propaganda has not changed. Whether it’s the scorching sun or the cold winter months, Grandpa Tang’s figure always appears in the countryside, schools, communities, and squares… His behavior is praised by some, misunderstood by others, and even ridiculed by others for not taking his job seriously. “After retirement, I can show people the door and raise flowers, and earn one or two thousand yuan a month. Doing anything is better than doing it.”.
Upon hearing these harsh words, Grandpa Tang confidently said, “Back then, Lei Feng was also seen as a ‘fool’. The times require this kind of ‘fool spirit’, and I am willing to be this’ fool ‘.”
Carrying out voluntary fire safety publicity requires interacting with the fire brigade. After getting familiar with it, Grandpa Tang came to the fire brigade more and more times. Over time, the friendship between Mr. Tang and the firefighters deepened, forming a strong father son relationship. During promotional breaks, whenever there is time, he comes to cheer on these “soldier sons”. He cares about the work, life, study, and family conditions of the team members, encourages them to work with peace of mind, and contributes his own light and heat to the construction of the base. The fish and water stories of “Soldier Father” and “Soldier Son” have been widely praised by people.
Firefighter Xiao Chen was injured during training and was taken to the hospital for surgery. Due to his family being away from home, he was feeling low and homesick during his hospitalization. After learning about the situation, Grandpa Tang and his wife took the initiative to take care of their “military son”, giving him a variety of “sick patient meals” and chatting with him to relieve stress. With the careful care of the elderly couple, Xiao Chen quickly recovered and was discharged from the hospital.
There are many team members like Xiao Chen who are cared for and moved by Grandpa Tang. Firefighter Xiaohua is an orphan who lacked family care from a young age and became restless to work after joining the firefighting team. After learning about this matter, Grandpa Tang became interested and had multiple heart to heart talks with Xiaohua to understand his thoughts and dynamics. He gave special care in daily contact and invited Xiaohua to his home for reunions on holidays, treating him as his own son. With the care and love of the elderly, Xiaohua’s thinking became more and more stable, his work enthusiasm became higher, and he was soon promoted to class monitor.
There are unpredictable events in the sky, and people have their fortunes and misfortunes. At the age of 81, Grandpa Tang fell seriously ill.
Before he died, he asked his wife to find his certificate of “National 119 Fire Protection Award exemplary individual”, called his children to the hospital bed, looked at the certificate and said his last wish: “There is no end to the fire safety publicity work. After I leave, you should take my baton and continue this public welfare undertaking that concerns the safety of thousands of families.”
Seeing his wife and children with tears in their eyes and nodding in agreement, Grandpa Tang calmly closed his eyes.