The history of the Springfield Fire Department dates back to 1792 when the first hand pumper, Lion, was purchased. On January 24, 1794, a fire club with 50 members, all prominent citizens of the city, was organized. Fire districts were established in 1830 by an act passed by the Massachusetts legislature. By 1833, Springfield officially organized a fire department, and like the fire club, the new volunteer department consisted of prominent members of the community. The fire department chan...

At the turn of the new millennium, the visions I call Light Showings began. I sat in prayer in the early mornings before our family awakened and got ready for work and school. With my eyes closed, I saw in my mind's eye, a picture of the most ordinary thing: one day a raindrop, the next a thimble or grain of sand and so on.This simple picture would spin until its form dissolved in a whirling vortex of light. How this vortex became a sacred doorway into the Light, I do not know. But...