Marty Goin hands donated water to Fort Worth Firefighter/EMT Elfidio Quiñónez as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
FORT WORTH — Marty Goin pulled up to a southwest Fort Worth Walmart on Saturday with about 10 cases of water for firefighters battling the Ross fire.
For Goin, the fire is personal.
He spent years in Scouting and later served about a decade as a Scoutmaster, developing a lasting connection to Worth Ranch, the historic Scout camp damaged when the wildfire swept through Palo Pinto County.
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“It just broke my heart to see what was happening to the ranch,” Goin said. “It just kind of brought tears to my eyes to see the old buildings burned down.”
Goin was among North Texans who brought water, electrolyte drinks, snacks and other supplies Saturday to a donation drive organized by the Fort Worth Police Department for firefighters working the massive blaze west of the city.
Related: Firefighters continue battling Ross fire after blaze scorches 85,000 acres
As of Saturday, the Ross fire had burned an estimated 85,000 acres and was 31% contained. The fire began Monday in Palo Pinto County before spreading into Jack County. Hundreds of firefighters and volunteers have joined the response.
A plane drops water on a plume of flame from Ross fire spreading across the ridge, on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026 in Palo Pinto County.
Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News
Fire departments from communities across Texas have sent personnel and equipment to reinforce local and volunteer crews.
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The Fort Worth Police Department’s Crime Prevention unit held Saturday’s collection from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. outside the Walmart at 7451 McCart Ave., near Sycamore School Road.
The donations were to be delivered to the Jermyn Volunteer Fire Department in Jack County, where the supplies would be available to departments helping fight the Ross fire.
Fort Worth police Officer and public information officer Brad Perez said officers on the city’s west side came up with the idea of collecting supplies for crews working the fire.
“We all are neighbors with each other,” Perez said. “If somebody’s in trouble, then we want to show the Fort Worth way. We’re here to help them.”
Fort Worth Police PIO Brad Perez carries donated water out of the back of Francisco Arauz’s car as the FWPD South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Besides drinks, residents arrived with cooling towels, sunscreen, lip balm, wipes, gloves, protein bars, trail mix and other supplies firefighters could use during long shifts.
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Perez said what had been collected early Saturday was only a small portion of what officers expected to receive during the four-hour drive.
He said the effort reflected a bond among first responders that overrides the friendly rivalry between police officers and firefighters.
“We may have fun poking fun at each other and all that,” Perez said. “But when it comes down to getting to work or helping each other, there’s no holding back.”
Related: What is Texas A&M Forest Service? The agency does more than fight wildfires
The drive attracted donors from outside Fort Worth.
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Trivania Larkins and her mother, Fatima, drove from the North Dallas area with four cases of water, wipes, trail mix, hard candy and other snacks.
They said they followed the department’s requested-items list while shopping and focused on food and supplies firefighters could easily carry and use in the field.
Community members drop off donations as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Fort Worth Firefighter/EMT Elfidio Quiñónez carries donated water as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Fort Worth Police PIO Brad Perez shakes hands with Francisco Arauz of Fort Worth after Arauz dropped off donations as the FWPD South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Fort Worth Police officer Bittinger carries water donated by Bill and Brenda Piganelli of Crowley with the BISD/Burleson Fire Department Fire Academy as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Community members drop off donations as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Fort Worth Police officer Bittinger carries water donated by Bill and Brenda Piganelli of Crowley with the BISD/Burleson Fire Department Fire Academy as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
“It’s not much, but I hope that at least it’ll kind of help replenish them a little bit,” Trivania said.
She was especially moved that volunteer firefighters were working the fire without pay.
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“My prayer goes out to all of them,” she said. “I just want them all to make it home safe.”
Trivania said she appreciated firefighters leaving their families and communities to help people threatened by the wildfire.
“They’re away from their families, volunteering to come and do something that’s on their heart to do,” she said. “I appreciate them for what they’re doing.”
Another donor understood the work firsthand.
Bill Piganelli, a retired DFW Airport firefighter, brought water, lip balm and other supplies. He said students in a fire academy program where he teaches in Burleson also donated water.
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Seeing volunteer firefighters travel long distances to work the Ross fire resonated with Piganelli after his career in the fire service.
“It touches my heart big time,” Piganelli said. “That’s what we do, man. We’re here to serve the community.”
His message to firefighters was simple: “Stay safe, stay healthy.”
Fort Worth Police officer Bittinger unloads water donated by Bill and Brenda Piganelli of Crowley with the Burleson ISD Fire Academy as the Fort Worth Police Department South Division hosts a supply drive in Fort Worth, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The department collected donations to support the firefighters working to battle the Ross fire.
Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News
Related: A flood of grief after Texas wildfire ravages beloved scout camp
Goin had seen the reach of the response himself Friday while near the fire, where he met a volunteer firefighter who had traveled from West Odessa.
“There’s people coming in from all over,” Goin said.
Goin originally took his cases of water closer to the fire Friday, hoping to hand them directly to crews. The firefighters he encountered told him they already had enough, he said.
After learning about Saturday’s collection, he found another way to get the water into the firefighting effort.
His goal was straightforward.
“Just to keep the guys refreshed,” Goin said.
For Goin, though, helping firefighters also offered a way to respond to the damage at Worth Ranch, a place that has been part of his life for decades.
Buildings at the historic Scout camp sustained catastrophic damage as the Ross fire swept through the property earlier in the week.
Goin said some of his favorite memories there came from watching young Scouts experience the outdoors.
“Just seeing the kids learn and explore, you know, discover things,” he said.
When rebuilding begins, Goin hopes the ranch retains the character generations of Scouts remember.
“I hope they preserve the antiquity of the original buildings,” Goin said, “and don’t make it all modern.”