The watering hole is hosting a fundraiser to assist in the purchase of some fairly vital pieces of equipment - two breathing apparatuses for its community-owned truck.

The community needs to raise about $12,000 to get this equipment.

Stories like this really bug me, because they should not need to happen in the first place.

I've never stopped feeling a massive sense of disbelief when I see firies selling raffle tickets, or the State Emergency Service volunteers in their orange overalls shaking tins at the fountain.

In a world where we pay so much tax, we need to place a higher value on what our volunteers do for society.

When I say society, I mean the rest of us.

The hard working members of these brigades or units will likely never speak out about what funding they do receive from government, but could you imagine a world where we had no CFA or SES volunteers to turn to when we need them the most?

Neither can I.

But we can surely do better than to half fund the purchase and delivery of the vehicles and life-saving equipment members use in often the most dangerous and trying conditions, to try and prevent the loss of life and property.

And the overwhelming majority of these people are unpaid volunteers, giving their own time to help the rest of us.

Recent events in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and in eastern and north-eastern Victoria are a poignant reminder of the value of the work our emergency service personnel do.

In the media we are guilty of reporting how many lives are lost, and how many homes have been destroyed by infernos like those we've all witnessed this past six months or so.

And let's not forget the estimated billions of our precious fauna that have perished in these blazes.

But the paid and volunteer emergency services personnel have actually saved thousands upon thousands more homes than the number lost.

Doubtless, they've saved many more lives than what's become the tragic toll of a summer that's tested many.

At the very least, we should do the very most to ensure these people have everything they need to go about their vital work as best prepared as they can be.

Call it proactive purchasing, or whatever, but we shouldn't need to have to resort to pub fundraisers to ensure we get breathing apparatus for firies.

And that's not to diminish in any way the efforts of all those working to raise the funding to complete this transaction.

I also understand that there's a strong sense of community ownership when people come together and raise a few dollars for a worthy cause.

But given the multi-billion cost of fighting bushfires, the cost to insurance companies and ultimately all of us, we should be looking to put money into purchasing equipment in the first place.

I'm not smart enough to determine who should pay the difference for all this equipment, but I don't think I'm alone in thinking we need to find a better way.

In a worse case scenario, what if people stopped donating?

We'd all be in a lot more strife than we thought we were during the height of ieght

So in the spirit of supporting Huntly Volunteer Fire Brigade and their upcoming fundraiser, here's a worthy mention.

The gig is on Sunday, March 15, at the Huntly Hotel.

We'll give it another plug closer to the date.

On a more sombre note, Bendigo and the broader aviation industry lost one of its greatest champions this week with the passing of local pilot and instructor Chris Gobel.

Chris was among the four people killed in an horrific collision involving two planes near Mangalore, east of Bendigo, on Wednesday.

The Gobel family's contribution to flying in this part of the world has been immense.

Long before there was an upgrade to the Bendigo airport runway and passenger terminal, there was Bendigo Aviation Services, the company Chris poured his heart and soul into for decades.

There would be many readers who trained for their own licence to fly under Chris' watchful eye, or who were privileged to share the skies in a charter under his command.

He will be deeply missed.