Spring Hill softball tournament raises money to restore Fire Belle, a 1957 firetruck

A friendly rivalry played out on a Spring Hill softball field as the city's police department and fire department squared off in a tournament with a purpose. The game raised money to restore Fire Belle, a 1957 Ford fire engine that has been part of the community for nearly 70 years.

"It's a 1957 Ford," said Spring Hill Fire Department Chief Graig Temple. "Us, as a fire department, we give lineage to that history."

Longtime residents share that attachment. Ann Russell, whose husband spent about 30 years as a volunteer firefighter, said Fire Belle was the first fire engine the department had. Fellow longtime resident Jackie Glenn put it more simply: "She's a legend in Spring Hill!"

Many in the city would like to see Fire Belle return to community traditions such as the Christmas Parade, but the truck has seen better days. It is now sitting in a repair shop and needs a new engine, brakes and transmission. Temple said the repairs will cost close to $60,000.

That is where Benny Jett came in. Jett, the 17-year-old president of the Spring Hill Historical and Genealogical Society, helped gather local sponsorships and organize the softball tournament. "Fire Belle represents old Spring Hill," Jett said. "Spring Hill used to be 400 people and now it's up to almost 70,000."

Even with all that growth, the event drew a cross-generational crowd. Spring Hill Mayor Matt Fitterer took the field himself, calling Fire Belle "a very important historical asset to the city." At the concession stand, one man admitted he was backing the fire department, joking, "They don't pull me over!"

Glenn brought her own memory of the truck. In 1972, when she was a student at what was then Spring Hill High School, curtains in the auditorium caught fire. Fire Belle was nearby, but the truck would not start. "All of us juniors and seniors went up there and pushed Fire Belle out of the bay, pushed it down School Street," she recalled. "Of course, the school's still standing, so we got the fire put out. My hand prints were on that truck at one time. It's a special memory in my heart and in my hands."

Jett credited the community for rallying behind his idea. "Everybody helped me, supporting me with this idea," he said, adding that the effort will "ensure Spring Hill's history will be continued in future generations." Russell agreed with the goal. "I think it's wonderful," she said. "I really do."