Letter written to the Hays City Commission and read to commissioners by Mayor Shaun Musil at the Dec. 28, 2017, meeting:

Last Friday, Dec. 22nd, we were getting the house ready for our family to stay the night; five adults and three grandkids were joining us for the evening.

As Dottie was getting the house ready, I dropped by. I suggested we should get a new battery for our carbon monoxide detector. She informed me it needed more than a battery, as it was broke.

She suggested I call my brother and see if he had any of the detectors at his store.

He said he didn't, but he told me the Hays Fire Department was giving them away.

I drove to the HFD office at 11 a.m. and told the lady at the desk, Lisa Beilman, my problem. I asked how much for a new detector, and she said they were free and would be installed by the HFD. I told her that my wife had installed them before and that we needed it today and I was sure they were busy.

She informed me that they would probably be able to install it that day. Within about 30 minutes, I received a call from the HFD and they would be over between 2 to 2:30. HFD firemen Keith Mermis and Tanner Pabst arrived at 2:30 and were finished about 3.

Our grandkids are 10, 8 and 6 years old. When the firemen arrived, I showed the grandkids the firetruck outside and they were excited.

As they were getting ready to leave, I asked Keith and Tanner if they would pose with our grandkids by the truck. They agreed right away.

The firemen grabbed their helmets and heavy coats and handed them to our grandkids. Our grandson wore the hat and coat and one of the granddaughters wore the helmet and one wore the coat.

I want to thank these two firemen for making our grandkids' day. I want to thank the Hays Fire Department for this great service of installing CO2 and fire detectors. I am sure Dottie and I are on a long list of people who truly appreciate this great service.

Glenn D. Staab,

Hays