People on the Plains by Erin Malcolm

PEOPLE ON THE PLAINS 

Phyllis Anderson: An Original Falcon Firefighter

By Erin Wheeler 

Phyllis Anderson never dreamed she was ever going to be a firefighter. A babysitter? A bookkeeper? Yep. A hairdresser? Sure. But certainly not a firefighter. That is, until a December day in 1974 when a neighbor called to ask if Anderson planned to attend a meeting about the new fire department being formed in Falcon. 

Little did Anderson know that phone conversation would result in nearly two decades of volunteer service at the now Falcon Fire Protection District and a lifetime’s worth of adrenaline-pumping memories and long-lasting friendships.

A Colorado native, Anderson was born in Fort Morgan in June 1930 and was one of six siblings. The family’s proud Centennial State heritage dates back to the late 1800s or early 1900s when Anderson’s grandfather traveled to Morgan County via an immigrant car (boxcar) to become a homesteader. Her family left that area to relocate to Denver when she was 5 years old. Anderson graduated from West High School in 1948. 

That year, she met Arthur “Art” Anderson, who eventually became her husband. “I was working at a drug store; I started on the soda fountain and worked my way up to the office from there. Her future husband was working in the parking lot next door parking cars,” Anderson said. The two dated for six months, married on June 20, 1948, welcomed their only son, Brian Anderson, into the world in 1956, and enjoyed 63 years of marriage before Art passed away in 2011. Anderson said, “He was my best buddy.”  

The Andersons raised their son in Denver while Art worked as a sand and gravel truck hauler. Phyllis babysat for several children as young as 5 weeks and worked as a bookkeeper for her husband. Art’s hauling career moved the family to Falcon in 1973. Phyllis and Brian still live in the same home nearly 52 years later.  

A couple of years after moving to Falcon, the next-door neighbor called about the community meeting regarding a new fire department. “She talked so long that we didn’t even get to that meeting, but we sure made the next one,” Anderson said. “And I made almost every one since then, until I retired.” 

In 1975, Anderson became one of the original firefighters at the Falcon Volunteer Fire Department. She said, “I remember they handed out the applications and it kind of shocked me. I hadn’t even realized that I was really going to do this.” 

The team of volunteers quickly grew to about 25 members, including her husband and son, who served for five years. (Anderson said it was common at that time for couples and families to volunteer fighting fires together.)

Anderson said she vividly remembers the department’s first day in action. 

“The first call was a fire down on the railroad tracks, where the train would go out from Colorado Springs,” Anderson recalled. “We had a meeting after that, and then I think we had another fire at the railroad, and then another fire at the dump at midnight.” 

Equipment was limited during the early stages of the department’s service, so Anderson said she drove home and gathered wet mops to fight the initial fires. “Remember, we did all this for nothing. We went out and had to beg for funds to start this thing,” she said.

In addition to putting out fires, Anderson drove the firetruck nicknamed “Big Bertha” and responded to various other types of calls, including accidents, a drowning in a nearby pond and countless other emergencies. She also worked as a dispatcher after receiving dispatch training in Fort Collins, served on the board as the treasurer and wore many other hats around the department as needed (she even wallpapered the fire station kitchen). 

She said, “It made me feel good to do something good for the community. But I always felt like I still needed to do more than what I did.”

Anderson spent 15 consecutive years as an active firefighter and the department’s treasurer, took a brief hiatus to care for her mother, and was called back to her treasury position on the board for an additional four years before retiring for good in 2000. She totaled 19 years of volunteer service for the Falcon Volunteer Fire Department. 

During those years, the volunteers developed relationships that have stood the test of time. Anderson said, “It’s like another family. I still love getting together.” 

Anderson said she is looking forward to celebrating the 50th anniversary of the department with several of her original volunteer friends this year.  

In the meantime, she can be found enjoying crosswords, creating elaborate quilts, playing cards and cuddling her dog, Max.

Elderly woman holding a colorful patchwork quilt in a room with framed pictures and flowers.
Phyllis Anderson spent 19 years in service with what was then the Falcon Volunteer Fire Department.
Elderly woman sitting on a couch with a small white dog on her lap. She is wearing glasses and a striped shirt. A painting of waves is on the wall behind them.
Now retired, she enjoys quilting, crosswords and her dog, Max. (She even has a copy of the Falcon Herald, this newspaper’s namesake, from 1880!)

StratusIQ Fiber Internet Falcon Advertisement

About the author

Erin Malcom

Current Weather

Weather Cams by StratusIQ

Search Advertisers