Sometimes the best lessons occur when we don’t realize we’re learning. For the city’s youngest residents, the annual North Royalton Fire Department Safety Fair & Open House is one of those occasions.
Each May, in recognition of National EMS Week, the employees of Station 1 on Royalton Road open the large fire department garage doors and usher children in to climb aboard and tour emergency and patrol equipment and meet face-to-face with safety personnel including firefighter paramedics and police officers. Their parents and family members have the opportunity to meet with a range of exhibitors distributing take-home safety literature and safety themed items like travel-sized trauma kits, burn pads and educational activity books.
“The interaction with our first responders is so important,” said Amanda Livengood, a North Royalton mom of three-year-old twins. “Our kids love the fire trucks and the helicopter, but they’re also getting familiar with our city’s safety personnel. It’s really important to build that repartee early on.”
Held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 18, this year’s event featured a range of exhibitors and displays including MetroHealth Burn Unit and the Division of Trauma, University Hospitals Parma Medical Center, the Cleveland Metroparks, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Parks & Watercraft, the Traveling Fire Safety House and members of the North Royalton Community Emergency Response Team, among many others. Each exhibitor table was manned by knowledgeable, friendly representatives eager to educate attendees. There were also free refreshments and raffle entries for bicycle helmets and a bicycle, which was donated by North Royalton Firefighters, Local 2156. Helmets were donated by the fire department.
And as a special treat, the University Hospitals MedEvac Helicopter flew in, landed steps away from the fire department and opened its doors for meet-and-greets and tours. May 18 marked the 23rd North Royalton Fire Department Safety Fair & Open House, said Kathy Salvo, administrative assistant. Salvo dreamed up and created the annual event with former Fire Chief Mike Fabish.
“We were talking about doing a type of fair and it started off very small and has since grown to this,” Salvo said of the large-scale fair that draws hundreds throughout its four-hour duration. “All of our vendors have very important safety information and everyone is learning and having fun while doing so. The kids sometimes don’t realize they are getting a safety message, but they are and they’re learning.”
For Assistant Fire Chief Tom Habek, the Safety Fair & Open House is a great way to build and foster relationships with the community.
“I enjoy talking and interacting with everyone here,” he said. “Many people see us out in emergency situations but they don’t really know what goes on behind the scenes.”
Officer Jason Kimmel of the North Royalton Police Department stood proudly next to his traffic unit motorcycle and met with children and their families, allowing youngsters to hop up, take a seat and pose for family pictures.
“This is wonderful community relations and a great opportunity to let the public know we’re out here and building connections,” he said.
North Royalton resident Lisa Korduba, and her 5-year-old son, Julius, come every year to the free event.
“He loves to see all the safety equipment,” Lisa said of her son as he climbed into the driver’s seat of a fire truck. “He sees that our safety personnel are our friends.”


By SARA MACHO HILL
Contributing Writer