MSA and DuPont’s Globe Gear Giveaway Program
Since 2012, MSA Safety, DuPont Personal Protection, and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) have partnered to provide state-of-the-art turnout gear to fire departments in need. In 2024, MSA Safety will donate a total of 52 sets of Globe turnout gear and 52 MSA fire helmets (four per department) to 13 all-volunteer or mostly-volunteer fire departments in the U.S. and Canada.
Criteria • Application • Selection Process • Program Background • Gear Recipients • Frequently Asked Questions • Contact • Program Partners
To be eligible to apply, departments must meet the following criteria:
- Be over 50% volunteer.
- Serve a population of 25,000 or less.
- Be located in the United States or Canada and be legally organized under state/province law. *Indian/tribal entities not organized under state/province law are eligible.
- Individual applying on behalf of the department or department chief must be a member of the NVFC (MSA provided a complimentary NVFC membership to the first 500 applicants. That number has now been reached). Learn about member benefits and join at www.nvfc.org/join. Visit our FAQs to check your membership status.
- Demonstrate a need for the gear.
- Only one application will be accepted per department. Any subsequent applications received for that department will be disqualified.
- Recipients must use the donated items for the benefit of their department and not for any other purpose; cannot be resold.
- Recipients agree that their department name, details from application essay, and photo may be used in media by MSA, DuPont, and the NVFC for the purposes of promoting the donation program.
- Previous winners from the past two years are not eligible to apply.
Applicants that do not meet the stated criteria will be disqualified from the application process. View the official rules here.
The 2024 application period is now closed. Check out our special opportunities page for more giveaways, grants, and scholarships exclusively for volunteer responders.
After the application period ends, an expert panel selected by the NVFC will review the applications. 13 winning departments will be selected to receive four sets of turnouts and four helmets each. Two to three winners will be announced each month between July and December. Winners will be contacted directly before the public announcement is made.
Springville (TN) Volunteer Fire Department, one of the 2021 program’s recipients.
Volunteer firefighters selflessly devote their time and risk their own safety to protect their communities. Yet many volunteer fire departments struggle to provide the gear and equipment necessary to keep their personnel safe. Departments are forced to make do with an inadequate amount of turnouts or with worn-out, non-compliant gear they can’t afford to replace.
As the world’s largest and most trusted manufacturer of structural firesuits in the world, Globe by MSA is giving back to first responders in need through MSA and DuPont’s Globe Gear Giveaway program. The program launched in 2012 when Globe partnered with DuPont and the NVFC to celebrate the company’s 125th anniversary by giving away turnout gear to volunteer departments in the U.S. and Canada who demonstrated their need. With the success of the 2012 program and the high demand among departments for gear, Globe, DuPont, and the NVFC created this annual gear giveaway program.
In 2018, the NVFC began asking program applicants if their department had boots, gloves, helmets, and hoods for all of their firefighters. Nearly 50 percent of 2018 recipients indicated that they did not. To help address this issue, MSA donated four helmets to each winning department for the first time in 2019.
2019 also marked over $1 million worth of gear that has been donated to volunteer fire departments since the inception of the program. To date, 715 sets of turnout gear and 260 helmets have been awarded to 160 departments in need.
Click on the pins in the map to learn more about the departments that have received gear.
Frequently Asked Questions Process
Do I have to be an NVFC member to apply for the gear?
The gear giveaway program is for NVFC members only; however, MSA provides complimentary memberships to the first 500 applicants to help volunteer fire departments meet this criteria. If you are not within the first 500 and do not have an active membership at the time you apply, the NVFC will notify you before the review and selection process.
Our volunteers are paid on-call. Does our department qualify for the program?
The NVFC considers paid on-call as volunteers for this giveaway program. Your department must be over 50 percent volunteer to be eligible.
We are a tribal organization that is federally organized. Are we eligible to apply for this giveaway program?
Yes, you are eligible!
My town has multiple departments. Can they all apply, or just one?
That would be up to the discretion of the town or authority having jurisdiction (AHJ).
Other things to consider are: Are the departments’ response statistics different, do they operate off the same budget, and do they share resources? Is there one department more in need than the others?
You will need to make your case for the need for this gear, so you can decide if one application for all departments would be better or if each should apply on its own.
Can junior firefighter programs apply for this program?
Junior firefighter programs can apply for the Globe Gear Giveaway; however, only standard sizing will be provided. Custom garment sizing for this giveaway program is not available. Recipients must be able to fit in these size ranges:
Jacket
Chest: Men 34-60 inches; Women 28-50 inches
Sleeves: Men 32-38 inches; Women 28-34 inches
Length: Men 29, 32 (Standard), or 35 inches; Women 29 inches
Pants
Waist: Men 30-60 inches; Women 28-50 inches
Length: Men 26-36 inches; Women 24-34 inches
When will my department know if we’ve been selected to receive the gear?
Notifications to applicants will go out monthly starting in July until December, and two to three winners will be announced each month. Winners will be contacted directly before the public announcement is made.
What styles of MSA’s Globe turnout gear are part of this giveaway program?
Globe CLASSIX® turnout gear is donated through this program. Learn more about this style on MSA’s web site: CLASSIX Jacket, CLASSIX Pants.
What materials are included in MSA’s Globe turnout gear donated through this program?
The turnout gear donated through this program is made of a gold Pioneer outer shell, Caldura Elite SL2i thermal liner and Stedair 3000 moisture barrier with lime/yellow 3M Scotchlite Triple Trim. Learn more about these materials on MSA’s web site: Turnout Gear Materials.
What styles of MSA Cairns® helmets are part of this giveaway program?
The helmets donated through this program are the Cairns® 1044 Traditional Composite Helmet and Cairns® XF1 Jet-Style Fire Helmet in select configurations and with custom fronts. Winning departments select color(s) and sizes(s) and may mix and match styles. Learn more about these helmets on MSA’s web site: Cairns® 1044 Traditional Composite Helmet, Cairns® XF1 Jet-Style Fire Helmet.
Can our department change the style, specification, or configuration for turnout gear and helmets donated through this program?
The turnout gear and helmet donation cannot be changed to any other style, specification, or configuration. Additional turnout gear options may be purchased at 50% off list price.
Are the four sets of MSA’s Globe turnout gear made to order or taken from the manufacturer’s stock?
Globe does not maintain stock inventory for turnout gear. The four sets of gear donated through this program are made to order based on sizing performed by an MSA representative.
Who from MSA will contact our department about receiving the turnout gear and helmets?
NVFC sends winning department contact information to MSA to reach out about turnout gear sizing and helmet selection. Departments are contacted by either an MSA First Responder Sales Manager or authorized MSA distributor in the winning department’s region.
How long will it take for our department to receive the donated gear?
Once the department is sized for turnout gear, the authorized MSA distributor places the turnout gear order with MSA’s Globe order processing department and the helmet order with MSA’s marketing department. Standard lead times at the time of order receipt apply to gear donated through this program.
Is there a deadline to get our order in to receive turnout gear and helmets through the 2024 giveaway program?
Orders for turnout gear, helmets, and fronts must be processed no later than December 24, 2024. This deadline may be extended for awards made in December if it is not feasible to schedule turnout gear sizing in time to meet the December 24, 2024, deadline.
Who should I contact for updates on estimated delivery times for the turnout gear and helmet donations?
For an estimated delivery date and subsequent updates, winning departments should contact the authorized MSA distributor who placed the order.
Can I publicize this turnout gear and helmet award?
Yes. Receiving this donated gear is a positive opportunity to proactively reach out to local media outlets and share this news. It’s also a way to highlight why receiving this gear is important for not only your department, but for the volunteer fire service community as a whole.
Who should I contact to publicize this turnout gear and helmet award?
You can share the news about this award with your local municipal government, on your department’s social media pages, and/or with the media members in your local community, such as those you routinely interact with at scenes or other calls.
Are there any example documents my department can use to highlight our gear award?
Yes. The NVFC, in conjunction with MSA Safety, has developed a news release template and social media post templates for you to use. You can follow the templates as a starter for your news announcements or fill in the templates and share with the media or on social media.
When should I publicize our turnout gear and helmet award?
The best time to highlight your turnout gear and helmet award is when the gear arrives and is about to go into service. As noted, however, delivery time on custom turnout gear is typically a few months. You could make a social media announcement about the award and make a bigger announcement in the months after the gear has arrived.
Should I use photos or video to publicize this opportunity?
Absolutely. Photos showcasing the new turnout gear and helmets are welcome to show off what you’ve been awarded.
If you have any questions, please contact Lori Shirley at lori@nvfc.org or 202-887-5700 ext. 125.
About Globe Manufacturing Company and MSA Safety
Globe Manufacturing Company, a leader in fire service protective clothing, is a subsidiary of MSA Safety Incorporated. MSA Safety Incorporated (NYSE: MSA) is the global leader in advanced safety products, technologies and solutions. Driven by its singular mission of safety, the Company has been at the forefront of safety innovation since 1914, protecting workers and facility infrastructure around the world across a broad range of diverse end markets while creating sustainable value for shareholders. With 2023 revenues of $1.8 billion, MSA Safety is headquartered in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania and employs a team of over 5,000 associates across its more than 40 international locations. For more information, please visit www.MSAsafety.com.
About DuPont Personal Protection
From first responders to industrial workers, DuPont provides a wide range of personal protection solutions, including some of the most trusted and innovative brands in the industry, such as Kevlar®, Nomex®, Tyvek® and Tychem® to meet your safety needs. More information can be found at personalprotection.dupont.com
About DuPont
DuPont (NYSE: DD) is a global innovation leader with technology-based materials and solutions that help transform industries and everyday life. Our employees apply diverse science and expertise to help customers advance their best ideas and deliver essential innovations in key markets including electronics, transportation, construction, water, healthcare and worker safety. More information about the company, its businesses and solutions can be found at www.dupont.com. Investors can access information included on the Investor Relations section of the website at investors.dupont.com.
DuPont™, the DuPont Oval Logo, and all products, unless otherwise noted, denoted with ™, ℠ or ® are trademarks, service marks or registered trademarks of affiliates of DuPont de Nemours, Inc.
About the NVFC
The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) is the leading nonprofit membership association representing the interests of the volunteer fire, EMS, and rescue services. The NVFC serves as the voice of the volunteer in the national arena and provides critical resources, programs, education, and advocacy for first responders across the nation. Learn more at www.nvfc.org.
