WEST MILFORD The small town of Delmar, Alabama will receive a much needed gift from the Township of West Milford, following a chance encounter. A 1987 E1 Hurricane Pumper will be donated to the southern town’s fire department after the township council agreed unanimously on Wednesday of this week to donate the fire truck. The chance encounter came when a truck delivery vehicle was dropping off a delivery at West Milford’s Fire Prevention Office and its driver got talking with Michael Woch, the town’s Fire Marshall. Woch takes up the story, “A truck driver came into our yard here on Edgar Road and he was from Delmar. We began talking about the effects Hurricane Katrina had on his town and he told me about the damage to their local fire department. “I told him we had the truck here that was not being used and that I would speak to the council about possibly donating it to them.” Woch met with the council last week and put forward the case for sending the truck to Delmar and despite a few minor reservations, the council was receptive to the idea. The truck is no longer in service in West Milford due to its age and the availability of more up-to-date fire fighting equipment. Woch explained to the council that the truck could be retained by the township and sold at auction for possibly as much as $9,000. The truck is not quite in full operational condition, but Woch explained the Delmar Fire Department are aware of this and believe they can make the necessary repairs to bring the pumper up to peak condition. Woch explained, “The truck needs some pump repairs as well as some other basic maintenance but it is in generally good working order.” One councilman who supports the idea is Bob Nolan, “It’s the right thing to do. We were not using the truck and we have the opportunity to help people who were less fortunate than ourselves.” The pumper would need to be transported on a flat-bed truck to make the more than 1,000 miles journey. The Alabama town is accepting responsibility for this relocation. Delmar is a small rural town located in Winston County some 75 miles northwest of Birmingham. The volunteer department was established in 1993 and Scott Ward is the chief. The company currently has four vehicles and 30 volunteer firefighters. They must raise money to operate as they receive no taxpayer funds. More information on the Delmar fire department and community can be found at www.delmarfire.org. In other business: The township council recognized its volunteers of the year on Wednesday night. Those included belated Volunteer of the Year award for 2004, given to blood drive guru Jim Gilligan and the 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award, given to local historian James Van Hooker. The 2005 Volunteer of the Year went to Mark Lynch for his many years working in sports and to improve recreation in the town, and the 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award went to Marilyn Lichtenberg for her numerous services in the town including recreation, the chamber of commerce and the friends of the library, to name a few. A breakfast honoring the winners will be held at Hillcrest Community Center on April 23. The town council has decided to get itself involved in the national debate over port ownership. The proposed purchase of the operation of six U.S. ports, including the New York Cruise Terminal and the Newark Container Terminal by a United Arab Emirates-owned company, has sparked strong opposition on both sides of the political divide. The council unanimously passed a resolution asking the federal government to prohibit the pending deal. One of the two township public defenders resigned at last night’s council meeting, only to be reappointed some two seconds later. Joseph Affinito had been formally notified of his dismissal from office due to his non-submission of an attorney accountability disclosure. But Affinito claimed his oversight was in part due to being on vacation. After council discussion it was agreed that if Affinito, who has served as a public defender in the town for eight years, requested his resignation from office, he could in turn be re-appointed by Mayor Joseph DiDonato instantly. Affinito resumed his position following approval by the mayor.