Sending thanks and 12 pizzas to Hanford's Fire Station No. 1 first responders

They must go, and in only seconds they’re on the road, always the first to respond.

These are the guys and gals who must go – to save a life, fight a fire, or rescue that cat stranded in a tree. It’s all part of the job, and they justifiably earned that prestigious title: “first responders.”

They deserve respect, and maybe a little more.

At least that’s what former city of Hanford surveyor Doug Storeby reasoned when he delivered 12 pizzas to Hanford’s Station No. 1 on April 16. Local firefighters get plenty of kudos, but a pizza or two make their jobs just a little bit more rewarding.

According to Dustin Costa, a captain with the Hanford Fire Department, Storeby, the former surveyor turned pizza delivery man,  hand-delivered 12 pizzas to Station No. 1.

“He brought us ten pizzas from Me and Ed’s,” said Costa. “Me and Ed’s threw in a couple of pizzas for free. He let me know ahead of time. He contacted me just to make sure it was okay – because of the whole coronavirus thing.”

Costa was not about to turn down free pizzas. Storeby showed up the next day with the pies, and while first responders, like firefighters, are just doing their jobs, they occasionally enjoy a good pizza. It’s gratifying when someone shows his or her appreciation, either with a thankyou or a sausage and pepperoni combo.

“It was good. It’s always nice for the public to show their appreciation with something like this,” said Costa.”

It turns out Storeby is also a family friend who met Dustin’s father, Dave Costa, when he arrived in Hanford a long, long time ago.

Storeby, who worked for the city of Hanford and Kings County as a surveyor for 32 years, felt it was the right thing to do. “I saw and knew a lot of firemen over those years,” he said. He added that many in his family, from Avenal, were volunteer firemen. “My grandfather, uncle, my dad, they were all volunteer firemen. In light of everything going on in the world – with the coronavirus – I felt I needed to do something. I kind of wanted to do something for first responders.”

And that he did. He left Fire Station No. 1, knowing he had probably made a lot of new friends. Storeby returned to his business, West Coast Land Surveying, confident that he made some new friends with his tasty first responder gift.