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GOOD NEWS REAL NEWS HOMETOWN NEWS
SINCE 1916 Making Communities Better Through Print.™ VOL. CV, NO. IX
THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2022
GOVERNMENT
atascaderonews.com • $1.00 • WEEKLY
HISTORY
Atascadero Celebrates 100 Years of Fire and Emergency Services
Atascadero City Council Back in City Chambers for Hybrid Meeting The City will continue providing virtual meetings under AB 361 By CHRISTIANNA MARKS christianna@atascaderonews.com
ATASCADERO—The Atascadero City Council met for their regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 22, at 6 p.m. The hybrid meeting was held in the City Council Chambers and preceded by the Council’s 5 p.m. closed session. “For those of you that don’t know, we are back in Chambers. You can probably tell that, and we are working it out. CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
The Fire Department in Atascadero got its unofficial start in 1915, with a group of volunteers and one model-T Ford as a fire truck By CHRISTIANNA MARKS christianna@atascaderonews.com
ATASCADERO — This year celebrates Atascadero’s 100th year of Fire and Emergency Services in our beautiful city. The Fire Department started out small in 1922 but has only grown in equipment, facilities, and staff since then. And this year, we’re celebrating. The Fire Department in Atascadero got its unofficial start in 1915, with a group of volunteers and one Model-T Ford as a fire truck, where everyone was paid $1.00 a fire. Lee Cole, who owned his own fire truck, was pulled in during the summer months. Cole was in charge of the volunteers when he was on duty. Exactly 100 years ago, in 1922, the Atascadero Fire Protection District was born. And in February of 1926, the first paid fire department in Atascadero was started. You can still find the original firehouse on Traffic Way, a block up from the new firehouse, at 5815, though now it’s used for retail purposes. In 2015, it was decided that ‘Fire
After several years of being a volunteer fire department, the Atascadero Fire Protection District was started in 1922. Contributed photo
Department’ didn’t encompass everything provided by the department, and on Sept. 7, 2016, the Fire Department was renamed Atascadero Fire and Emergency Services. At the Feb. 22, 2022, City Council meeting Atascadero Fire Chief, Casey Bryson received a proclamation recog-
nizing the 100-year anniversary of Fire and Emergency Services virtually. “In recognition of the 100-year anniversary of the Atascadero Fire Protection District, now known as Atascadero Fire and Emergency Services. Whereas, in 1915, at the beginning of the Colony of Atascadero, a small,
COMMUNITY
all-volunteer Fire Department was established to serve the newly formed community. And whereas, in 1922, following a disastrous 5,000-acre wildland fire near the Eagle Ranch property, the Atascadero Fire Protection District CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
SPONSORSHIP
The ‘Daffodil Man’ Left Amazing Memories In His Wake The late Lee Swam was known for planting thousands of daffodils and creating other traditions in Atascadero By CHRISTIANNA MARKS christianna@atascaderonews.com
ATASCADERO — Lee Swam (aka the Daffodil Man) was beloved not only in the city of Atascadero but all over the North County. From planting thousands of daffodils throughout Atascadero to creating traditions that we still experience today, Swam left amazing memories in his wake. “He was quite a character, and he really did a lot of good things for the City of Atascadero,” said Swam’s friend and fellow Rotary Club member, Mike Lucas. Swam created a campaign in 2013 to plant a daffodil for each resident in the city. As a result, thousands of daffodils can be seen sprouting up
SPORTS
Rooster’s Firearms Sponsors Atascadero High School. Contributed photo
Rooster’s Firearms Banner at Atascadero High School Sparks Debate Lee Swam, who passed away in April 2021, never missed a chance to promote his daffodil project in Atascadero. Contributed photo
around town every spring. “He started making contact with various nurseries around the area to see if they could buy the King Alfreds [daffodils] in bulk,” Lucas said. “His concept was that he would purchase them and then try to sell them to other people, and whatever proceeds would come from that, that
COMMUNITY
NEWS
he would use that money to buy more daffodils.” Lucas added that Swam purchased thousands of King Alfred daffodils a year, and he himself helped Swam plant more than a couple thousand. Atascadero Rotary Club member and Swam’s friend, Donald Price CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
Owners Jim and Terry Mulhall have been sponsoring AHS for as long as they can remember
the school proudly sports the sponsor’s advertisement banner on the fence. The advertisement banners include different kinds of businesses, but one banner has raised concerns with a group of local parents. By CHRISTIANNA MARKS The banner in question is from christianna@atascaderonews.com Rooster’s Firearms, a local gun store in Templeton. Owners Jim and Terry ATASCADERO — Atascadero Mulhall have been sponsoring AHS for High School’s football field fence is as long as they can remember. full of banners from local businesses “My wife and I have 10 children, who donate money to AHS; in return, CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
SOCIETY
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