Clark County Fire District 6 helps celebrate volunteer’s 100th birthday

SALMON CREEK — Members of Clark County Fire District 6 joined in on the birthday festivities for Alvera Kelly as she turned 100 years old earlier this month. She was married to Glenn Kelly, the first paid career firefighter for District 6. Her party on Aug. 1 was held at the Salmon Creek United Methodist Church. “She was so thrilled to see the firemen show up. You just can’t imagine how much that meant to her. She was such a huge part of that district for so many years,” her daughter, Judy Mason, said. Alvera Kelly practically lived at the fire station at the time and volunteered, according to Fire District 6 spokesman Dave Schmitke. She occasionally went out on fires and “manned the ship as it were,” Schmitke said. Mason, 77, of Vancouver, said when the fire district built its second fire station in Salmon Creek, her family moved in. She said her mother answered the phones and kept the station clean.