KUA Brigade

On a cold, snowy, winter night in January of 1977, the Meriden Volunteer Fire Department was called to respond to a alarm box on the Kimball Union Academy campus. Upon arrival they found no fire, instead the box had been pulled falsely. But they did find a set of footprints leading away from the box. Gardiner MacLeay and Chief Arthur Thompson followed the tracks in a successful attempt to discover the culprit. The student was disciplined by the academy, and assigned to assist the fire department as punishment!

What started out as a punishment for the individual, turned into a great experience, and other students were recruited to serve with the department. The brigade now consists of ten to fifteen students and two faculty advisors. Each year the student volunteers undergo extensive training with the department so that they may be successful team members at an emergency scene. They respond with the fire department to calls all throughout Meriden and Plainfield. They are most valued during daytime incidents, when many of the town's volunteers may be unable to respond because of their occupations. This has lead to a wonderful working relationship with Kimball Union Academy and the creation of a program not found anywhere else in the world.

Current Members

Darrell Beaupré- Faculty Advisor

John Custer- Faculty Advisor

Spencer Allen

Kells Casey

Katie Dessert

Zack Hallock

Ahmed Mashabi

Jon Munro

Whitney Pane

Eva Saenz

Scott Teitelman

Becky Young

Josh Young