If you don't know what a fastnacht is or what it's all about, it's a Pennsylvania Dutch custom that is a fatty doughnut treat served traditionally on Fastnacht Day or Fat Tuesday, the day before Lent starts. Fastnachts were made as a way to empty the pantry of lard, sugar, fat, and butter, which were traditionally fasted from during Lent.

Pennsylvania Dutch fastnachts can often be potato doughnuts, and may be uncoated, powdered with table sugar, dusted with confectioner's sugar, or eaten with various types of syrup.

For just $6.00 you will get a dozen of their fresh homemade fastnachts.

The show starts at 6:30pm with the first session continuing till 8:00pm. Then after a short intermission, Terry will take the stage once again for another session of great country music that all ages will love and enjoy from 8:30pm-10.00pm.

Terry strives to bring back that live concert feeling to his audience’s, as he tells the story of Roy’s life and songs through narration and music. A great tribute act is as much visual as it is about sound, so no detail is overlooked right down to the way Roy held the guitar to his stance at the microphone. Terry’s 90 minute Roy Orbison Tribute is a complete self contained show.

Tickets are just $25.00 each or 2 for $40.00 which will include a wonderful dinner that evening made by our Ladies Auxiliary. This will be a NON-SMOKING event.

To order tickets, please call Firefighter Kindall Wann at 484-334-1302 or Ladies Aux. President Kim Martin at 484-769-0692. Doors open at 5pm with dinner starting at 5:30pm.

Under the grant program, $22 million will be allocated for Pennsylvania fire companies and $3 million for ambulance service units. More than 2,500 volunteer organizations took advantage of the $25 million program this year. This grant will go towards debt reduction for Attack 47, our 2007 Ford/4Guys mini-pumper.

The base award amount this year to a Fire Company was $9,500. However, additional funds were granted to Fire Companies who had Nationally Certified firefighters on their roster. For this, we received $2797.83 in bonus funds for our training levels.

Since 2003 the Fire Company has been awarded $99,756.62 from this program. With this grant program the Fire Company has been able to have replace our firehouse roof, purchase an emergency back-up generator for the firehouse, replace our furnace, buy self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), and pay down apparatus debt.

Fire Chief: Robert Martin

Deputy Chief: Garry Zerbe

Assistant Chief: Ryan Zerbe

Assistant Chief: Paul Krick

Captain: Kyle Zerbe

Lieutenant: Merle Hurst

Lieutenant: Scott Kramer

Fire Police Officers

Captain: Dayland Berkihiser

Lieutenant: Jeff Klick

On Friday December 23, 2011 the Womelsdorf Volunteer Fire Company and Berks County Dept. of Emergency Services received notification from Congressman Tim Holden, 17th Congressional District, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), that its 2011 regional Assistance to Firefighters Grant application in the amount of $1,220,560 was approved in funding round two of this year’s grant program. Funding from this grant will be used to purchase mobile radios for the emergency response vehicles owned by the grant recipients.

The County of Berks has begun a multi-million dollar upgrade to improve the performance of the radio system available to Berks County fire, police, EMS, and emergency management responders. Additionally, the new system will permit Berks County and the local responders to comply with a Federal Communications System mandate to abandon or upgrade the majority of the existing system before January 1, 2013. While the County is funding the infrastructure, responsibility for the cost of the mobile and portable radios used by local responders is the responsibility of these agencies and the municipalities they serve. As required by the grant program, the federal contribution of 80% of the total cost of the radios will be matched by a local 20% share. Additionally, local entities will still be responsible for the cost of their portable radios (walkie-talkies).

Earlier in 2011, RCC Consultants, Inc., Woodbridge, NJ, was contracted by Berks County to write two regional grant applications to assist in funding mobile radios for fire and emergency medical service agencies. Federal rules require an eligible applicant to serve as the lead agency for administrative purposes. Because the County of Berks itself is not an eligible applicant, it became necessary for a fire or EMS agency in each region to commit to this responsibility. The Womelsdorf Volunteer Fire Company and the City of Reading Dept. of Fire & Rescue Services undertook this responsibility in support of the emergency services throughout Berks County.

The grant award includes funding for mobile radios for 31 fire departments and 11 EMS agencies. The fire departments include Bernville, Bethel, Blandon, Central Berks, Eastern Berks, Fleetwood, Frystown, Hamburg, Hamburg Forest Fire Crew, Hereford, Kempton, Kutztown, Leesport, Lyons, Mt. Aetna, Mt. Pleasant, Port Clinton, Rehrersburg, Robesonia, Ruscombmanor, Stouchsburg, Seisholtzville, Shartlesville, Shoemakersville, Strausstown, Spring Twp., Topton, Virginville, Walnuttown, Western Berks and Womelsdorf. The EMS agencies named in the award include Bally, Bethel, Blandon, Hamburg, Lower Alsace, Oley, Schuylkill Valley, Topton, Western Berks, Elverson, Chester County and Newmanstown, Lebanon County.

The remaining fire and EMS agencies in the county are applicants named in the award under the sponsorship of the City of Reading. This application is still currently under review for a possible award in a later funding round. New awards are announced weekly.

Assistant Chief Zerbe responded and was advised by the Berks County 911 Center that they were receiving numerous fire alarm activations and a sprinkler activation. AC Zerbe arrived on the scene and established "Womelsdorf Command". There was nothing showing from the exterior however he was met by evacuating tenants who were reporting a fire in apartment 206. Upon his investigation, he confirmed an activated sprinkler head in the bathroom of 206 and an odor of something burning and a smoke condition on the 2nd floor.

Firefighters from Ladder 47 found a trash can in the bathroom of 206 had been on fire but was extinguished by the sprinkler head. Firefighters checked the vanity, ceiling and walls around the fire area and confirmed the fire was out. The sprinkler system was shut off and the building was ventilated using a combination of positive pressure and smoke ejector fans.

Western Berks EMS personnel checked on all occupants for smoke inhalation and injuries.