An elderly woman who Oelwein firefighters visit regularly to change batteries in her smoke detectors stopped at the fire station on Tuesday. She brought in $25 for the department and a donation request card she received in the mail. “Thank you Oelwein Fire Dept.” she wrote on the card and signed it. This thank you card campaign by a group called the Volunteer Firefighter Alliance came as a surprise to Oelwein Fire Chief Mike Hillman. It’s not an effort affiliated with his department. “We don’t solicit through third-party groups,” Hillman told the Daily Register Wednesday morning. His department has also never received any money from the group and has not had any contact with the Volunteer Firefighter Alliance.