New officers elected by the Peachtree City Volunteer Firefighters' Association were installed at the department's recent annual banquet at Whitewater Country Club.

Bill Gray succeeds Juergen Badura as president of the organization. For Gray, a three-year member, becoming a firefighter is the realization of a childhood dream, he said later.

He said his goals as president are to unify the volunteer and career membership and to raise the department's visibility in the community. "I'd like to offer citizens more free programs like blood pressure checks, and I want to make sure the load [of fire department activities] is shared.

"I'd like to stress," Gray continued, "that a combination department saves the citizens more than $750,000 a year, at the same time creating a bond between private citizens who are volunteers and the career staff. I'd encourage anyone to join."

The Chicago native said that one of the advantages of having a department literally spread throughout the community, as with volunteers, is that a citizen may call 911 and have a firefighter at the door "within a minute of the phone call to help with and assess your problem."

Gray and his wife own and operate Maben Automotive Products in Palmetto, where they rebuild starters, alternators, and generators for import cars. Their daughter is almost 7, their son 3.

Other new members of the board of directors include:

Josh Shelton, vice president.

Bill Volckmann, treasurer.

Bill Brady, secretary.

Rex Old, fire representative.

Steve Fodor, EMS representative.