COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

A red fire truck parked outside a building with solar panels and patriotic decorations, while people walk nearby.

Showing Up Beyond Emergencies

SHFPD’s role in Sleepy Hollow goes well past emergency response. In 2009, the District began mailing a quarterly newsletter to every resident — its first direct line of communication with the community it serves. A year later, SHFPD moved its Board meetings out of Directors’ living rooms and into the SHHA Clubhouse, ending a fifty-one-year tradition of meetings held in people’s homes.

A vibrant group of kids riding bicycles in a festive parade, many wearing patriotic decorations and enjoying the outdoors.

A Growing Presence

That presence deepened in the 2020s. In 2022, the District opened its first dedicated office, in a long-term lease at the Sleepy Hollow Community Center, and stocked the Center with emergency supplies residents can turn to during a disaster. That same year, a Sleepy Hollow resident donated a retired wildland-urban fire response vehicle; SHFPD restored it and put it back into service by 2024.

In 2024, the District also completed a Fire Smart Public Demonstration Garden at the Community Center — designed by landscape architect Ann Baker of Land Culture LLP — giving residents a walkable example of fire-resistant landscaping, and giving students from Archie Williams High School’s Wildfire Club a place to learn firsthand.