T-L Photo/KAILEY CARPINO Former Martins Ferry fire chief Tom Kelly stands alongside a department vehicle.

MARTINS FERRY — The Martins Ferry Lions Club and American Legion Post 38 are hosting a spaghetti dinner to benefit former fire chief Tom Kelly and his family from noon to 6 p.m. Feb. 3 at the legion.

Kelly stepped down from the fire chief post at the end of 2023 and has been diagnosed with cancer.

Kayla Shreve, Lions Club member, said that both the Legion and the Lions Club were looking to support Kelly and came together to organize the event.

“He is the former fire chief of Martins Ferry as well as worked for the water department. He’s done an endless amount for every organization and everybody in Ferry. He’s a very well-respected person, rightfully so,” Shreve said.

Shreve said Kelly has done a lot for the community, including helping organize Betty Zane Days each year.

She said Kelly has also helped out the Lions Club “hundreds of times.”

“He is just an amazing individual, and we’re very happy to do anything we can to help him and his family during this time,” she said.

The event will feature a 50/50 raffle, auction and bake sale.

Shreve said legion members Jenn Hibbitts and Jeff Sommer helped spearhead the event.

“They’ve been a great help. They’re letting us use their facility. They’re going to really cook most of the food. We’re just going to volunteer all day to help with the dinner, and then we’ve been just helping them with going business to business and collecting donations and stuff like that,” Shreve said.

Shreve said the auxiliary will be providing most of the desserts for the bake sale.

Local business owner Jason Wilson donated a new recliner from the Ashley Store at The Highlands. The recliner will be raffled off at the event.

Shreve said the donation was “very generous.” She added that many other businesses and community leaders have stepped up to the plate to support Kelly.

“We’ve had a lot of amazing donations from local businesses. Jacob’s Meat Market is donating all of our meat. Nickels is donating our bread. We have a few other friends and family in the valley that are helping with donations,” she said.

“The community has been amazing. Everyone seems very excited for it. We’ve sold a ton of tickets already. A lot of the local fire departments, not just Martins Ferry, but others have reached out and have asked for tickets to sell at their own departments. The Ferry fire departments have made very generous donations towards it as well,” Shreve said.

“Obviously, all proceeds are going directly to Tom Kelly and his family to help with medical expenses and anything else, you know, lost work, all that kind of stuff that they may incur during this time,” Shreve said.

“We’re stepping up to make as much as we can,” she said.

Shreve said anyone can make a monetary donation to the family as well. Donations can be dropped off at the legion and Ferry Hardware.

“We’re happy to accept those, and just at the end of the event, we plan to present the family with kind of just everything combined – everything we made and everything that has been donated so they just have one large sum,” Shreve said.

Pre-sale tickets and raffle tickets can be purchased at Ferry Hardware and the legion.