The annual dinner and auction benefit for Warren County BackStoppers this year is set to break the group’s record for fundraising, said Marthasville Fire Chief Jeff Backhaus.BackStoppers is a regional organization that provides support for the families of first responders who are killed or critically injured on the job.The dinner and auction was held Feb. 17 at the St. Ignatius Community Center in Concord Hill.Backhaus is chairman of the Warren County chapter of BackStoppers. He said he anticipates donations of more than $70,000 after expenses for the event have been paid. The exact amount will be announced at a later date.“Overall the event was just tremendous this year. ... I’m at a loss for words for how to describe the support that we have out of our community,” Backhaus said.In seven previous years, the local chapter has donated more than $385,000 to benefit first responders and their families.The history of the larger regional BackStoppers organization goes back to 1959. Since then, the organization has assisted over 160 families, including about 80 families currently, said board member Jim Silvernail.One such family was present at this year’s event.Mike Flamion, a Ballwin police officer who was shot and paralyzed during a traffic stop on July 8, 2016, was at the Warren County BackStoppers benefit with his wife, Sarah. Ballwin Police Chief Kevin Scott was there with them.“We never imagine one of our own would be catastrophically injured in the line of duty, but it’s a possibility,” Scott said. After Officer Flamion was injured, he said BackStoppers was there with support. “Within a few days, they were at the hospital asking how they can help.”Seeing the Flamions was an awesome reminder of how BackStoppers helps responders who are injured, Backhaus said.Reminders of area first responders who have lost their lives are also present at the event every year, in the form of portraits of Paul J. Fricke from the Hawk Point Police Department and Warren County Sheriff’s Department; Lonnie Cole from the Warren County Sheriff’s Department; and Vernon Seals from the Truesdale Police Department. Every year, the event opens with a ceremony to pay respect to those fallen officers.The Warren County BackStoppers fundraiser includes a dinner, silent auction and oral auction, offering a wide range of items and services. The oral auction alone raised more than $37,000 this year.But after the auction was over, donations kept coming. Auctioneer Charlie Nordwald asked if anyone had come with money that went unspent and would like to give it to BackStoppers — no auction, no bidding, just support for those who protect the community. He spent the next 10 minutes rapidly identifying the donors who wanted to give anywhere from $100 to $1,000, bringing in an additional $13,000.Many supporters are already planning ahead for next year.“We have people messaging for tickets already for next year,” Backhaus said. “We must be doing something right.”

Marthasville firefighters, from left, Eric Korte, Tyler Pruessner, Justin Backhaus and Derrick Roloff serve as the color guard at the opening of the Warren County BackStoppers benefit Feb. 17.

Record photo/Cindy Gladden

Pictured from left, Jim Silvernail of BackStoppers, Ballwin Police Chief Kevin Scott, Ballwin Officer Mike Flamion and Marthasville Fire Chief Jeff Backhaus attended the Warren County BackStoppers benefit Feb. 17.

Record photo/Cindy Gladden