DFBSSC UPDATES AND SUMMER NIGHTS RECAP

SPORTS AND SOCIAL CLUB UPDATE

WE TAKE A LOOK AT RECENT EVENTS FOR MEMBERS OF THE DUBLIN FIRE BRIGADE SPORTS AND SOCIAL CLUB (DFBSSC).

Iwould like to start by wishing congratulations to the DFB Golf Society on reaching the milestone of 50 years and for still going strong. It takes good support and a dedicated team to reach this anniversary, both of which I know the Golf Society has in spades. I wish them continued success for many more years.

CLUB FUNCTIONS

Unfortunately, due to the ongoing challenges we are all facing while dealing with COVID-19, our Summer Family event could not be held this year for the second year running. We are continually monitoring the restrictions in place, and for this reason we have not decided which format our family Christmas event will take. We have a couple of options available and the most suitable and safest one for all will be decided upon by the Committee.

RETIREMENT FUNCTIONS

With the ever-increasing numbers of retirements to add to those that have preceded them, we have provisionally pencilled in two dates for functions next year. This is all dependent on the restrictions in place, and for that reason are obviously subject to change. Plenty of notice will be given to all attendees, and we are looking forward to catching up with all of you and giving you the send-off you all deserve.

SUMMER WATCH NIGHTS

A big thank to all who attended our recent Watch nights in the Church Bar. They were a great success, and something we hope to do again later in the year. These nights would not be possible without the hard work of the Committee, in particular, Ger and Paul, who managed the logistics for all the nights. Some of what was involved in the organisation of these important social outings is detailed in the following pages. In addition to the Committee, I would like to also thank the Staff and Management in The Church Bar who are always a pleasure to deal with.

WORLD FIREFIGHTER GAMES LISBON 2022 & WORLD POLICE AND FIRE GAMES ROTTERDAM 2022

We are looking to hear from those interested in travelling to either of these Games next year to represent the DFB. They are both extremely well-organised events, a chance to compete against other emergency services from around the world, and importantly, a lot of fun. I know some of our sports clubs are busy trying to organise numbers for their individual

sports, but if you’re thinking of going, just let us know by emailing us, (dfbsportsteam@gmail.com) including WFG or WPFG or BOTH in the subject line, as well as your name, station and watch in the email. Further information and links to the sites of both games are available on our social media sites.

MONTHLY DRAWS

Congratulations to all of the winners of our monthly draws. Please contact Paul Mc Cann (C Watch ERCC) to arrange collection of your prize. All winners will receive a 100 voucher.

April 1 B Mulvaney (A8) 2 I Foley (B2) 3 S Owens (A1) 4 M Kearns (C1) 5 D Donnelly (A2)

May 1 L Bailey (C9) 2 J Meehan (A4) 3 D Baitson (B HQ) 4 R Connell (B ERCC) 5 P Lavelle (C2)

June 1 E Light (C2) 2 P Whelan (D5) 3 D Murray (A2) 4 R Currie (C HQ) 5 A Rogers (D7)

July 1 L Adamson (C ERCC) 2 B Mc Nicholas (T/O) 3 R Connolly (C ERCC) 4 B Lodola (A1) 5 K Maher (A5)

August 1 M Lodola (C HQ) 2 J Walsh (D12) 3 A Keeley (D4) 4 R Murphy (B7) 5 D Maguire (B4)

September 1 D Lorenzo (D9) 2 B Gilbert (A HQ) 3 R Young (B6) 4 Q Moran (C HQ) 5 A Cullen (B4)

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FINALLY

On behalf of the Club, I would like to thank all our members for their continued support. I would like to congratulate all that have retired recently and wish them a long and happy retirement. I would also like to welcome all of our new members. Our membership continues to grow, and will grow further when our new recruits pass out early in the New Year. Until then, I wish them well with the rest of their Recruit training.

We are always looking for suggestions or ideas from the membership, so should you have any, please speak with any member of the Committee or email myself at secretary@dfbssc.ie and your ideas/ suggestions will be brought forward at the next Committee meeting.

Thank you for your continued support. Dan Fynes, Secretary, DFBSSC

THE RETURN OF SUMMER NIGHTS

DFBSSC was delighted with the success of the Summer Watch Nights and looks forward to more in the near future, Ger Ryan tells Adam Hyland.

As mentioned in the Club Updates, the organisation of the annual Summer Watch Nights out was a welcome return to a degree of normality for DFBSSC members, and a great chance to catch up with friends and colleagues from across the Brigade.

The pandemic had put a necessary halt on these much-anticipated events, but thanks to the work of the Social Committee made up of members from across Watches and stations, the flexibility and generosity of the Church Bar, and the willingness of DFB members to attend made these a great success. They underline the renewed emphasis on the social aspect of the DFBSSC, and a lot of work has gone into this aspect of the club to make them happen again.

“Traditionally, Thursday nights were always the night for social events, when you’d work Wednesday night and Thursday day, and then go for a few drinks, usually in McTorcaill’s, which is gone now,” FF/AP Ger Ryan tells me, “They were a good way to have old-fashioned diffusion where people could relax, chat and catch up, to unwind from the stresses of work. However, over the years the social nights had dwindled, but when Dan Fynes and Declan Rice took over the running of DFBSSC, we started to have nights out in the River Bar, twice a year around April and October. These were usually joint Watch nights, but it was hard to find suitable nights that worked for everyone, so they progressed into single Watch nights, and that went on for about a year or so at the River Bar, after which we moved on to the Church Bar where we are now.

“COVID-19 has meant we weren’t able to hold any nights out, so myself and Paul McCann were eager to get them going again. We were approached by Darren from the Church Bar, who told us what they could do for us, and he came up with a safe and comfortable solution – an outdoor area completely separated from everybody else, ten tables that can sit six people at each, giving us a capacity of 60.”

With all DFB members fully vaccinated, it was still important to be able to hold these events in a safe environment, separate from the public, and with this reassurance, the number of attendees rose from previous nights out.

“This is a combination of people not being able to socialise for the last 18 months and wanting to get out,” Paul says, “and within the DFBSSC we are seeing a big increase in our member numbers with almost all new recruits signing up, so the numbers in general are going up. This year the weather has helped, especially for outdoor socialising.

“The photos show that people who haven’t had a chance to see each other since recruit class were now able to get together and socialise. For them to meet and catch up is great. On top of that, the 2020 recruits didn’t even get to have a night out after they passed out, so these nights are a great opportunity to meet up again. The idea is to get people together where normally they couldn’t, and to provide an environment that is safe, the way The Church laid it out.”

This safety was assured through hard work and taking on some newer ways of organising the events. Ger had used appointment slots to organise attendance at the outdoor Christmas event last year, but knew he needed a better way to tally numbers and keep everyone COVID-secure.

“That was all done with pen and paper,” he tells me, “but I got some advice from the 1875 Club, who told me they were using Eventbrite to make reservations and time slots for their events. So, this year we have been using this app, which helps us get an idea of numbers who are going to attend on the night. If we are approaching capacity, we can give the venue the heads up in advance.

“As well as that, it automatically gives us a contact tracing list, so we can have a full list of names. On the night, people sign in, like they would now have to do at a restaurant, and we can contact trace, get advance numbers, and allow for more space and tables and chairs if needs be. We can also see what stations or groups tend not to go to these events, and we can ask for

feedback from them to see how we can accommodate them.”

This new method also means it is easier for members to join in and find out about events.

“It’s easier to get involved,” Ger tells me. “You just get the Eventbrite app and register, so you can find out about what is going on, rather than us having the old-fashioned way of putting a poster on the wall of a station that only some people will take notice of.”

This is on top of the ramping up of social media activity within DFB in recent years.

“There are more channels than we ever had before. We have the Facebook page, Instagram, Twitter, as well as the WhatsApp station groups, which are great, because with each station rep controlling it, they can make sure that people on leave or away for any reason can still be included and can know what is coming up or going on,” Ger says. “We are encouraging reps to add new members to the groups, and also those who aren’t in it to join it, so they can see all the information that we are getting out there. We can say goodbye to the days when people don’t go to these events because they didn’t know or hear about it.

“Members are also able to see how much craic the nights out can be when they see the photos shared on social media, and they are more likely to sign up themselves as a result. As the new

recruits come in, the younger the profile gets, and the more people we have who want to socialise outside of work.”

As for this summer’s nights out, Ger tells me a lot of craic was had, with food and drink on hand for everybody.

“Thanks to DFBSSC food and drinks were provided,” he says. “Drinks vouchers were handed out on arrival, and food platters brought out to enjoy. There were also reps there for every night to take charge of signing in, issuing vouchers, and letting us know how things are progressing, but the main idea of the nights is to eat, drink and be merry!”

There were five nights out in total this summer, with one for each Watch, and this year, another for the nonoperational staff who are members of DFBSSC.

“That came about after feedback we received saying this group couldn’t go out on a Thursday night because they were in work on a Friday, so we decided to trial a Friday night to see how it went. We want to be able to provide a social outlet for all staff, so it was an obvious decision to also put on this night for those staff.

“We would also like to go back to having the nights out later in the year, and we don’t want them too close to Christmas so we will be looking at around October or November,” Ger adds. “We would also encourage all members to come up with ideas, so if they think we could do something better we can take it on board. Also, if members have suggestions of other activities, we can take them on board. For instance, we had the suggestion of meeting up for coffees in the OPW coffee shop in Phoenix Park, and we are looking at that.”

Ger urges members to encourage other members of their crew or Watch to get involved because of the importance of getting together to unwind and share a few laughs.

“Socialising is a very important aspect of our job, and it is a great way to meet up with people that you might not have been able to catch up with for years,” he tells me. “There has been a very good mix of all ages and all ranks from officers to new recruits at these nights out, and the whole thing is inclusive for everybody.

“We want to keep the tradition of meeting up on a Thursday night going, and these developments are helping to make that happen. It’s important to remember that the DFBSSC is not just about sport, it is also about socialising, and that’s not just nights out but many other things we are looking to do and are happy to take suggestions on. We are definitely looking forward to next year when hopefully we can add more social aspects to our calendar.”