Owosso council approves spin-off of Firefighters Memorial Steering Committee into separate nonprofit

Owosso — The City Council voted to approve a motion to separate the Firefighters Memorial Steering Committee from city control and allow it to operate as an independent nonprofit organization.

Councilman Dan Law, who presented the committee’s history and goals, said the group formed to preserve the city’s 1921 American LaFrance fire truck and ultimately decided to pursue a period-correct fire-station display in the Corona Historical Village. Law told the council the committee has raised about $67,000 toward construction and thanked volunteer committee members for their work.

“We’ve raised almost $67,000. So we’re pretty close to being able to start thinking about the buildings,” Law said during the presentation.

The council approved a motion to spin the committee off from city control after a second and a roll-call vote. The mayor declared the motion approved.

Committee members named in the record include Brenda Schneider, Teresa Schneider, Sarah Mulry, Eric and Terry Maag, Gordon Settlemeier, Ross Stanley and others. Law credited a retired firefighter, Rick Snyder, and Snyder’s son Travis for major contributions to the effort and singled out Sarah Mulry for handling legal and 501(c)(3) compliance work.

Council records from the meeting show the resolution intends to recognize committee members for their fundraising and operational assistance and to acknowledge volunteers who helped with the annual memorial barbecue. The council did not attach funding or implementation conditions to the spin-off during the vote.

What’s next: Committee members said the group will continue fundraising and prepare the nonprofit’s paperwork and governance documents now that the council has approved the separation. The council did not set additional city funding in the motion.

Provenance: topicintro SEG 142; topfinish SEG 331