McArthur volunteer fire department hosts veal dinner fundraiser Sunday

Every veal dinner sold Sunday will help keep McArthur’s volunteer fire department ready for the next call across the village and five surrounding townships. The fundraiser will support a department that serves McArthur and covers Brown, Elk, Swan, Richland and Jackson townships, where local response depends heavily on volunteers.

The McArthur Volunteer Fire Department will host the meal from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 26, at the fire station, 303 West High Street in McArthur. Dinners will cost $15 and include fries, dessert and a drink. Veal sandwiches will be sold for $7, giving residents a lower-cost option while still sending money directly to the department.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the fire department, which Vinton County tourism describes as a 100% volunteer fire department. County listings identify Chief Chuck Fri as the department leader. The station is one of several public safety anchors in McArthur, alongside the sheriff’s department, the health department and EMS, making it part of the village’s core emergency-response network.

The fundraiser comes at a time when volunteer fire departments are under strain statewide. Ohio officials said the number of volunteer firefighters dropped 6.5% from 2018 to 2021, while calls rose 9% from 2018 to 2020. That gap matters in a county where a volunteer department must still answer structure fires, crashes and medical emergencies with a limited pool of people and aging equipment.

State leaders have tried to blunt some of that pressure. Ohio’s fiscal year 2026 budget includes $8 million for small-county volunteer fire department grants, and eligible departments can receive up to $50,000. The state also announced nearly $8 million in Small County Volunteer Fire Department grants to 190 departments across 49 counties in 2026. Even with that support, departments still lean on local fundraisers to pay for equipment, supplies, training and other operating costs that keep trucks in service and volunteers prepared.

For McArthur, that makes Sunday’s dinner more than a meal. It is a direct investment in faster, more reliable fire protection for a village that depends on volunteers when seconds matter. The department can be reached at 740-596-2346.