Fire Safety Story Time

In partnership with Great Southern Bank, we are expanding our commitment to community education through a new literacy initiative aimed at young learners and their families. The program, supported by the Community Matters Grant, enhances the department’s monthly Fire Safety Story Time held at Fire Station 3.14 at the Discovery Center Springfield.

Firefighters will begin providing a free book to every household with a child in attendance – an effort designed to reinforce key lessons beyond the classroom and into the home. Each book is carefully selected to highlight themes such as fire safety, good citizenship and the importance of reading.

The initiative is funded through a $4,000 Community Matters Grant awarded to the Springfield Fire Department in February. The funding allows the department to supply books to children who participate in the interactive educational sessions, ensuring that families leave not only with knowledge, but also with tools to continue learning together.

“This partnership allows us to extend our mission beyond emergency response and into prevention and education,” said Cassie Melvin of the Springfield Fire Department. “By combining fire safety messaging with literacy, we’re helping build safer, more informed households while also encouraging a lifelong love of reading.”

Fire Safety Story Time is a recurring monthly event hosted at the Discovery Center, where firefighters engage children through storytelling, hands-on demonstrations, and age-appropriate fire safety discussions. The addition of take-home books further strengthens the program’s impact by encouraging continued conversation and learning at home.