A 10-year-old Chelsea boy who has spent years studying fire alarms now owns a working Gamewell street box of his own, a gift from the city employee who keeps Chelsea’s fire alarm system running.
The City of Chelsea said Sunday that Paul Koolloian, the city’s communications and fire alarm maintenance supervisor in the Emergency Management office, gave the boy, identified only as Simon, a functioning Gamewell box from his personal collection. The box in the city’s photograph is the familiar red pull box, numbered 121, of the kind that still hangs on poles around the city.
According to the city, Simon has been fascinated by fire alarms for years and has built his own alarm system. He met Koolloian during a visit with his mother, and the two recognized a shared interest.
The gift has a history behind it. When Koolloian was 11, the city said, a fire alarm maintenance worker gave him a box that he still keeps. He decided to pass that gesture on.
Simon answered with a handwritten note, which the city posted alongside the photo. “I never thought this would happen, but you made my dream come true,” he wrote. “Thank you, I am forever grateful.” Below the message he drew a fire box of his own.
Chelsea is one of the Massachusetts cities that still maintains a municipal fire alarm box network; Koolloian’s title covers both the city’s radio communications and that system. The city did not say when the gift took place.