On-duty crew of AFMA’s Engine 231 gratefully receives the “check” from Wesley Hukriede’s birthday celebration. (Photo by Randy Smith)
Brian Curry
Sun Lakes resident Wesley Hukriede recently celebrated his 70th birthday at Mulligans. His friends who attended the affair were surprised to have a special request from him: “I had asked that no one buy any gifts or drinks for me but, instead, to give a donation at the door that I would then give to the Arizona Fire & Medical Authority (AFMA) here in Sun Lakes.” Hukriede explained, “I just feel that it’s nice to help the ones that are always helping us.”
Hukriede explained that in 2022, while living in Mesa, his house had been hit by lightning and burned to the ground. This happened while he was out of state. His home and everything in it had been lost, but all the other buildings had been saved because of the hard work of the firefighters. “I’d like to see others follow my lead on birthdays and also make donations like this to AFMA,” Hukriede suggested. He’d also like to thank all of his friends who attended and made donations at his birthday party.
Wesley remembered being the five-year-old son of a father who was not only the chief of police, but a volunteer firefighter in a small town in Minnesota. “My mother worked at night, and my father would take me on fire calls. I would sit in the fire truck and watch my dad and all the other volunteers go into burning homes and barns to get people and livestock out, not knowing if they would come back out,” Hukriede recalled.