Volunteer Fire Articles

By Stephen Drill
The Express

BANBURY, England — Every parent feels like a taxi driver at times. But for Trudy Boyle it means being on call every night of the week. Her firefighter son Jed, 20, does not have a driving licence and she has volunteered to take him along to the station if there is a fire.

Trudy has dutifully jumped out of bed up to three times a night to get Jed there in time.

Now she has been honoured for her devotion. "I was really chuffed," Trudy, 44, said yesterday.

"They presented me with a framed certificate and said I was an honorary firefighter. But I didn't get to turn the sirens on.

"I didn't expect anything like this, I just did it because I was a mum."

Jed, a part-time fireman in Banbury, Oxfordshire, cycles the two miles from home during the day but at night Trudy gives him a lift. Her husband Steve, 45, declined to take a turn because he works long hours as a construction manager in London.

Fire chief Darran Gough said: "We would like to thank Trudy very much for all her help." Jed has now passed his driving test. "I think mum will be a bit more relaxed in future," he said.

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