PHOTO: To pay for its new emergency response all-terrain vehicle, the Fire Department sorted and recycled about 217,000 cans donated by community members.
The Lanesborough Fireman's Association bought the $15,000 vehicle, a Can-Am Outlander Max XT, entirely with money from its Cans for Lives program, which helps fund the purchase of emergency equipment and vehicles. After sorting, members bring the cans to a facility in Vermont, getting 7 cents for each one.
"We've been able to, essentially, partner with the citizens of the town to help bring this to life for us," said Glen Storie, president of the Lanesborough Fireman's Association. "Their effort to bring the cans here that they collect all year long, and then the effort the membership here puts in to collecting them, sorting them."