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10 + WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, November 21, 2007 She would know. Sarah took over the reins from Waterloo fire Chief John deHoage for an afternoon last week after winning a contest put on by Waterloo Fire Resâ€" cue. _ And she quickly learned what it‘s like to be head of this service. i _ "All the firefighters asked me if they could get the day off," she said jokingâ€" ly. Her response was always a simple DeHooge â€" who serves as fire chief for the other 364 days of the year â€" was impressed by how quickly Sarah learned about the fire department. "She quickly gained an appreciation for the role of a fire chief and the many meetings and decisions that are carâ€" ried out on a daily basis," he said. Waterloo Fire Rescue has held the Waterloo Fire Chief for the Day contest periodically over the years to raise awareness about the service and fire safety, said Paul Felhaber, the departâ€" ment‘s public education officer. _ "I find they (kids) really can soak this stuff in," he said. Statistics show educating young minds has proven to change family behaviours when it comes to fire safeâ€" ty, deHooge said. . _ "More and more the media is reporting on family lives saved because one of the kids drove home the fireâ€"safety message and knew who to call in an emergency," he said. "In some of these cases, parents admitted that home fire safety was not a priority until their child insisted that the home have working smoke alarms and a family fireâ€"escape plan." One of the ways Waterloo Fire Resâ€" cue reaches out to the public is by holding its annual fire prevention open house. That‘s where Sarah‘s mom, Michelle, filled in a ballot in Sarah‘s name for the fire chief contest. The family had forgotten all about it until they got a call saying Sarah‘s name had been drawn from hundreds of ballots. â€"_"I was so surprised and excited," Sarah said of her initial reaction. It began with Sarah signing a memo with deHooge saying she will take the lessons she‘s learned about planning an escape route in case of an emerâ€" And her brief stint as chief â€" on Nov. 13â€" lived up to her expectations. It‘s a tough job, but she can do it eing the fire chief is a tough job, according to eightâ€"yearâ€"old Sarah By Jenntrex ORMStON Chronicle Staff Fire prevention officer Paul Felhaber gives Sarah Cox, 8, a hand during her brief stint as fire chief. gency and checking smoke alarms back to her classmates. _ Then she got to put out a contained fire, which was scary for the Grade 3 Westvale public school student. "{1 thought) am I going to be burned, am 1 going to die," she said. "But then when he (Felhaber) said ‘I‘ll be helping you,‘ I wasn‘t as scared." She was glad to have a hand because the fire extinguisher was tough to manoeuvre. "I had some help and it was still really heavy," she recalled. After that she got a tour of the westâ€" side fire station, at 470 Columbia St. W., and learned some tips, such as what to do if a fire prevents you from leaving your bedroom. "You have to take something, wave it out the window and jam the window shut, and then cover the cracks in the door with something and then just wait for a firefighter and crouch down low," she said. For Sarah, one of the highlights of LIFESTYLE being chief was driving around her neighbourhood in a fire truck with flashing lights. _ She was also given a stuffed Sparky the fire dog toy, which has already become her favourite bedtime comâ€" panion. _ This talking toy spouts out fireâ€"safeâ€" ty messages, such as tell an adult if you find matches or a lighter. _ ald‘s. _ The big gift she got that day, howevâ€" er, was a new bike donated by McDonâ€" The restaurant, at King and Columâ€" bia streets, also treated Sarah, her famâ€" ily and Felhaber to dinner after her duties were finished. _ It‘s difficult for her to narrow down what she liked best about being fire chief. she said. _ She enjoyed it so much she‘s conâ€" sidering a career in firefighting â€" although she hasn‘t ruled out being a lifeguard or veterinarian just yet. "It‘s so hard, (I liked) everything," JENMIFER ORMSTON PHOTO I'I‘he May Court Club of Kitchenerâ€"Waterloo presâ€" ents Christmas Dreams 18 at Conestoga Mall from Nov. 21 to Dec. 8. Tickets cost $2 each, three for $5 or $8 for 10. The draw will be held on Dec. 8 at noon. Prizes include 14 trees, a hockey stand, wreath, floral urn, table setting, painting, angel treasure, garâ€" den treasure, rocking chairs, a Dickens village and one omamental item. _ Proceeds gb to the Children‘s Wish Foundation, Sunbeam Residential Development Centre and May Court Club‘s projects. For information go to www.maycourtclubsofcanaâ€" da.org. K\V Christian Women are holding its dinner meetâ€" ing Christmas fair and silent auction on Nov. 26. Bidding starts at 6:30 p.m. at Westmount Golf and Country Club at 50 Inverness Dr., in Kitchener. _ Tickets are $25. To RSVP call Sharon at 519â€"885â€" 3825 or Marjorie at 519â€"745â€"4698. The department of physics and astronomy at the University of Waterloo is holding a series of free, public lectures for the community. All age groups and education levels are welcome to attend. _ This event is pan of the 50th anniversary celebraâ€" tions at UW. Lectures will be presented by one of the department‘s leading researchers in astronomy. _ The latest lecture is today. The title of the lecture is Gravitational Mirages and it will be presented by Michael Hudson. O the Christmas dreams come true at Conestoga Mall at UW. _ The lectures will start at 8 p.m. and following the lecture a tour through the observatory will take place â€"weather permitting. â€" For more information about the specific lectures go to www.physics.uwaterloo.ca/events/starlecâ€" tures.html. se Mng is available for $3 in lot A, which is located at the corner of Seagram Drive and University Avenue. â€" â€"o _ A campus map can be found at www.uwaterloo,ca/map/map_colour.pdf. The physics building code is PHY. This is the final lecture in the series Evenings with The location is Room 235, in the physics building Evening with the stars Christmas fair and auction