Say Goodbye To The Old Fire Station No. 3

I hate change. Not the money kind, mind you - the kind that messes with my memories of "how it used to be." Like the kind of change taking place at 4th and Lincoln. A crew is tearing down old Fire Station No. 3 as I type. I'd hurry if I wanted to catch one more glimpse of this fading, and once proud Casper landmark.

I know technically Fire Station No. 3 still stands in its new location at 12th and Beverly. It's magnificent; a true testament to sophisticated and state of the art firehouse engineering with the power to get emergency responders to the scene as quickly as humanly possible... but I'm still going to miss the old one...a lot! It lived to be 58. Remember I told you I hate change.

 It's the same as when I hated when they tore out the old ballfields where this new building stands. The same as when they tore out the old Taco Johns right across the street next to the old bicycle shop that's now a tax place. and when they tore out Woolco...and the movie theatres, and Buttreys out of the Beverly Plaza across the street. I could go on forever.

I guess I will call myself lucky. A lot of those places that I mentioned disappeared a long time ago. It's somewhat comforting to know I hold them in enough regard to remember them after all these years. I know that we all must have these thoughts and feelings from time to time. It just seems like it affects me more than your average human being.

I've never confessed to being normal. 

About the fire station, I remember how cool, yet natural, it looked from the street with its manicured lawn and trees. I remember thinking it probably sucked for the guys because there was no way a pole could fit in there. I remember thinking how bad I wanted to scale that brown wooden behemoth of a tower that stood beside it for so many years.  

Please consider this my tribute to you old Fire Station No. 3. Thanks for housing generations of great men who have saved countless lives and property over the course of your fantastic run. And thanks for the memories. Rest assured I will probably remember you for the rest of my life.