Series

Events & Community

Open houses, fire prevention week, and the other ways a department shows up for the community it serves — plus what it takes to plan and budget them well.

Insights

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The Santa Run Playbook
The Santa Run Playbook
The Santa Run is one of the highest-trust, highest-visibility nights a department gets all year. Here is how to plan one worth the community's time, and the year Marshall stole the whole show.
7 min read
Three Helicopters, a Fire-Safety Clown and a Line Down the Street
Three Helicopters, a Fire-Safety Clown and a Line Down the Street
How firehouse open houses taught me some of my earliest lessons about community, creativity and marketing.
5 min read
Teach Ten Minutes, Save a Life: Running a Hands-Only CPR Community Day
Teach Ten Minutes, Save a Life: Running a Hands-Only CPR Community Day
The most valuable ten minutes a department can spend with a stranger might be teaching them how to push hard and fast on a chest.
7 min read
How to Put On a National Night Out the Community Shows Up For
How to Put On a National Night Out the Community Shows Up For
The best National Night Out events feel like a community festival with a public safety heart. Here is what to include and how to pull it off.
5 min read
What Separates a Memorial That Honors From One That Just Fills a Calendar
What Separates a Memorial That Honors From One That Just Fills a Calendar
A memorial is not an event you produce. It is a promise you keep, in front of the people who are still living with the loss.
7 min read

Featured tools

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Calculator

Open-House Budget Calculator

Plan the full cost of your community open house, including a contingency buffer, and see your funding gap or surplus.

4 min · freeBuilder

Open-House Planner

Turn an open-house date into a real plan — committee, budget, marketing calendar, activities, safety, and a day-of run sheet.

5 min · freeBuilder

Community Engagement Calendar Builder

Build a practical year of public education, recruitment, recognition, preparedness and community activities - with an owner, lead time and channel for each.

6 min · freeCalculator

Event Staffing Calculator

Estimate the people, roles, shifts and coverage needed to safely operate a public-safety community event - a planning estimate you can adjust and approve locally.

4 min · free

Guides

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Beyond the
bay doors
Beyond the Bay Doors: A Fire Department Open House Playbook
A practical guide to planning, promoting and delivering a fire department open house your community will remember.
Community & Events · 19 min read

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