Firefighters raise funds to fight cancer

This past Sunday, Sisters Coffee Company was filled with the sounds of live music as two small firefighter hopefuls asked patrons to help fight blood cancer.

Brennan and Mackenzie Frutos donned their fire helmets and held up their fire boots in an effort to raise money for the Scott Firefighter Stairclimb, which benefits the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS).

The music was performed by Damon Frutos, their father and volunteer lieutenant for the Cloverdale Fire District, as part of his participation in the Stairclimb event. Overall, their efforts raised just over $390.

Frutos has participated in the event for several years, but this year will be something different as the mission has hit closer to home. Last year, Damon's older brother, DeRew, was diagnosed with T-Cell Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

"It was something which caught the whole family by surprise," Damon said.

DeRew has been undergoing treatment since his diagnosis, but still has a long fight ahead of him. He also had to deal with a bout of shingles in the midst of his chemotherapy. The constant pain kept DeRew from being able to work, but his spirits are still high.

Damon says, "It gives the event a whole new meaning when it is your brother, your own flesh and blood, who would benefit from the research to find a cure. This year my goal is not just to finish, not just to raise money, but to show my brother I support him and will fight with him."

The Stairclimb event is held each year on the second Sunday in March as more than 1,800 firefighters from around the world descend on Seattle with a mission to stamp out blood cancer. Their challenge: climb 69 floors while wearing full structural firefighting gear and breathing air from a self-contained breathing apparatus.

This is the largest event of its kind in the U.S. Each participant is asked to raise at least $300 to help fund cancer research and patient services for those suffering from leukemia and lymphoma. In 2014, the event raised a record $1.97 million and the participants this year are hoping to shatter that record.

This year, the Cloverdale RFPD will be sending its first official team to the event. Lieutenant Damon Frutos, Acting-In-Capacity Lieutenant Spencer Cashwell, and Lieutenant Clinton Weaver will all be traveling to Seattle, and together are hoping to raise $4,000.

The Cloverdale team will be partnering with the Sisters-Camp Sherman RFPD team in their fundraising efforts, and Sisters-Camp Sherman will be hosting an open house on Saturday, February 28, from 9 to 11 a.m. at 301 S. Elm St. All of Sisters Country is invited to drop by and support the fight.

There will be opportunities to meet the team members and tour the fire apparatus, as well as raffle prizes from local businesses. Raffle tickets will be on sale at the open house and all proceeds will go to the LLS in support of the local hometown heroes.

You can get more information about the Stairclimb at http://www.firefighterstairclimb.org and you can also donate online at www.llswa.org/goto/cloverdalefire.