The 15th annual Volunteer Firefighters of the Year poll culminated with a gala evening at the Bobycenter in Brno on Friday 21 November. The expert jury selected 25 units and 25 volunteer fire brigades. The jury appreciated the professionalism, courage and dedication of the units. In the case of the corps, the jury appreciated their year-round activity in towns and villages. The final placement of units and corps in the poll was decided by public vote. The prestigious glass helmet, the symbol of the poll, went to the 10 finalists with the highest number of votes. The gala evening was hosted by Barbora Černošková and Petr Rychlý. A recording of the ceremony will be broadcast by Czech Television on 6.12.2025.
Survey Volunteer Firefighters of the Year celebrates 15 years
The 15th anniversary year confirms the great interest of the public in the stories of volunteer firefighters and their extraordinary contribution to society. The voting confirmed the great interest of the public. The total number of votes cast exceeded 35,000. Thanks to the support of partners, the poll was able to distribute financial support and in-kind donations worth almost CZK 3 million this year. The value of donations is thus the highest in the history of the poll.
The poll supports and develops other socially beneficial projects. Last year’s “Be like Ondřej” campaign brought over 10,000 new volunteers to the bone marrow donor register. For the first time, this year’s survey awarded certificates to companies friendly to volunteer firefighters.
Award of the Special Heroic Act Award
A powerful moment of the evening was the awarding of the Golden Helmet – an exceptional award, which was announced for only the second time in the history of the survey. This special award was given to a member of the unit from Dolní Benešov, Jindřich Štefek. Jindřich Štefek, a volunteer firefighter, saved the life of a man trapped in a flooded cellar during the floods in the Opava region last September.
DCom received an award for its long-term support of the Volunteer Firefighters of the Year survey
Our company DCom, Ltd. s ro has been the main partner of the survey since 2014. It is a great honour for us to be part of this great project that recognises the dedicated work of volunteer firefighters and presents stories of their exceptional commitment to the public. We were awarded a glass helmet with a red heart for our long term support of the poll. Thank you!
