

kindergartener Abdul Raheen check out
some of the equipment on the fire engine.
(Photos by Marilyn Thomas/H-F Chronicle)
What better way to end summer school than with a chance to sit in a fireman’s truck!

there for kindergarteners
Mya Mack, left, and
Braylen Hampton, who
climbed into the cabin
of the Flossmoor Fire
Department truck.
After six weeks of learning, the Summer Academy for District 161 ended Thursday, July 26, for more than 400 kids pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.
The last day was a fun day for the children when a Flossmoor Fire Department pumper truck and ambulance pulled into the parking lot.
Firemen Ethan Stratman and Ed Hutton gave the little ones a hand up into the fire truck’s cab and had them sit in seats to get a great view from way up there. Capt. Matt Berk and firefighter Brendon Spratt answered questions about all the equipment on the truck. The older kids got to try on a firefighter’s gear.

kids at Flossmoor’s
Summer Academy how
the tarp he’s holding
would be used to cover
their electronics to
protect from water and
smoke damage.
Jennifer Hartman, who co-directed Summer Academy with Rebecca Williams, said the idea was to get kids familiar with firefighters and learn a little about the job.
“We do teach the kids fire safety, but this is for them to have a personal one-to-one with a firefighter,” Hartman said.