Board Secretary, Donni Long
The first experience Donni Long, secretary of our Board, had with Stony Point Volunteer Fire Company was in action as first responders. Donni and her daughter were driving over to Kohl’s off of Proffit Road when they had a collision with a newer driver who hydroplaned. Thankfully, no one was injured, but Donni was impressed with how quickly SPVFC responded to that accident. Fast forward a dozen years or so and Ambassador W. Nathaniel Howell (a SPVFC volunteer at one time) asked if she would be interested in serving on our Board. He was, as she described him, not exactly someone you could say “no” to, and that was that.
A longtime resident of Albemarle county, Donni had once upon a time hoped to be a professional ballet dancer as a child. Instead, she graduated from the University of Texas with a BA & MA in language arts. Married to a now retired USAF Officer, the mother of two and grandmother of five has taught high school, been a real estate broker in Texas, Florida, Ohio and Virginia in addition to being a historical interpreter for Mount Vernon, Highland (formerly known as Ashlawn-Highland) and Monticello. She also has a variety of other volunteer jobs on her resume, including singing in her church choir and working the polls on election day.
Donni is not the first member of her family to be associated with the work of first responders. Her son was once employed as firefighter for the Forest Service where he would spend summers fighting fires out west as a smoke jumper. He has since gone on to a career as a professional engineer, which has a little less danger involved.
It is the professionalism here at the station that Donni admires the most. We’re a friendly crew who have fun, but once that radio goes off, we are all attention waiting to hear what engine is being called out. Her initial impression of how quickly we respond to events has not been dimmed by her time with us – we are a dedicated crew who pride ourselves on taking care of our community. We are delighted to have Donni serve with us as our Recording/Corresponding Secretary of our Board.
If you’re moved to volunteer in the Stony Point community, there are many ways to get involved. Please let us know and we’re happy to provide you with ideas of how you can support SPVFC.