By Jim Beers, Contributing Writer
CHESTER — Recently, a member of the Monroe County “Backstoppers” came to a meeting of the Randolph County Firefighters Association and expressed that “The Backstoppers, Inc.” was now ready to expand to Randolph County.
Pictured, left to right, are: Backstoppers, Inc, Executive Director, Chief Ron Battelle; Monroe County Backstoppers Members, Larry Gardner and Dan Hannon; Randolph County Backstoppers, Inc. Coordinator, Jonathan Barbour, Randolph County Deputy Sheriff, Steeleville Firefighter. The group is proudly displaying the flag of the newly formed Randolph County Backstoppers, Inc. Organization. Photo provided by Randolph County Backstoppers.
According to Jonathan Barbour, a Steeleville Firefighter and Randolph County Deputy Sheriff, members of the Randolph County Firefighters Association asked if any of their members would be willing to coordinate efforts to complete the application process and seek support from other Randolph County First Responders.
Barbour said, “I have been interested in “The Backstoppers, Inc.” for quite a while, so I immediately volunteered to coordinate the efforts to join Backstoppers.”
“The application process was quite a bit of work, but getting support from our First Responders in Randolph County was no problem. We received signatures from every Fire Chief and Police Chief in the County, as well as from Vice President /COD Charles Kelley of Med Star Ambulance. States Attorney Jeremy Walker, State Representative David Friess, and Illinois Senator, Terri Bryant also provided letters of endorsement.”
Barbour is a Deputy Sheriff with the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office. He has been with that agency since 2015. He is also the Chief Deputy Coroner. He lives in Steeleville with his wife and two children. He has been a member of the Steeleville Fire Department since 2004 and is currently a lieutenant.
Barbour said, “I am currently the spokesperson for the newly formed “Backstoppers” organization in Randolph County and invite anyone who has questions about the group to contact me.”
“The Backstoppers, Inc.” provides ongoing needed financial assistance and support to the spouses and dependent children of all police officers, firefighters, volunteer firefighters, and publically-funded Paramedics and EMTs in the coverage area who have lost their lives in the line of duty or have been catastrophically injured.
In addition to the mission of “Backstoppers” to supporting the families of fallen heroes, “Backstoppers” provides financial assistance to public safety officers who suffer a catastrophic injury while performing their duties.
“Backstoppers” help by eliminating the surviving family’s debt; providing health, dental, and vision insurance coverage; reimbursing out of pocket medical expenses; paying for home insurance; real estate taxes; and Property taxes; and assisting with miscellaneous extraordinary expense.
“The Backstoppers, Inc.” Police Officers’ and Firefighters’ Fund has a Federal Tax ID of 43-6032561 and it is a 501 (C) (3) organization. “Backstoppers” was founded in 1959 and is funded by memberships, individual and corporate donations, and fundraisers.
“Backstoppers is managed by a 30-person Board of Directors and Board Members are not compensated. The Board is serviced by an executive director and staff of five associates. The current Director is Col. Ron Battelle, Retired Chief of Police for the City of St. Louis.
“The Backstoppers, Inc.” currently supports approximately 95 families with 75 dependent children. Since 1959 “Backstoppers” has supported over 180 families. Annually “Backstoppers” provides roughly $2.5 million in assistance annually.
The coverage area for “Backstoppers” is 23 counties in Missouri and Illinois. Missouri Counties include Cape Girardeau, Crawford, Franklin, Jefferson, Lincoln, Perry, Pike, St. Charles, St. Francois, St. Louis City, St. Louis County, Ste. Genevieve, Warren, and Washington.
Illinois Counties served include Bond, Calhoun, Clinton, Jersey, Madison, Monroe, Perry, Randolph, and St. Clair.
“Backstoppers” has several levels of membership including Individual ($150); Family ($250); Community Partner ($500); Bronze ($1,000); Silver ($2,500); Gold ($5,000); and Platinum ($10,000).
The Randolph County Backstoppers organization will be responsible for hosting various fundraisers from time-to-time. All proceeds go into the “Backstoppers, Inc.” Treasury and different county organizations are treated equally regarding their level of assistance.
Barbour said, “We had our first Randolph County Backstoppers meeting at the Steeleville Firehouse and had a great turnout. We intend to rotate the meetings around the county at various locations. The next meeting will be held in Chester.”
“At our first meeting we established by-laws and elected officers. Officers include President Jonathan Barbour of Steeleville; Vice President, Sean Landgraf, Red Bud Fire Chief; Treasurer Bruce Schoenbeck of Baldwin; and Treasurer Justin Hecht of Steeleville.”