State Treasurer John Perdue presents a check to Assistant Chief Micky Walters.

State Treasurer John Perdue presented a check of $2,625 to the Ellenboro Volunteer Fire Department Thursday, which may help the squad replace a chassis on a rescue truck.

 

The funds apparently came from a state Workers’ Compensation reimbursement check. The check got misplaced, Assistant Chief Micky Walters said, and had to be reissued.

Walters said the truck with the bad chassis carries jaws of life equipment on it.

“These funds are very, very beneficial,” he said. “That amount of money will help. It is so difficult to pay Workers’ Comp premiums and then insurance on our buildings and vehicles. As a volunteer fire department you only have so much money to work with.”

Treasurer Perdue said he was ecstatic that his office could return the funds to the department.

“We’re delighted to reunite rightful owners with their assets but it’s especially rewarding to help an organization which guards public safety,” he said. “These people often have someone’s life in their hands.”

Unclaimed property is any asset from which an individual has become separated, such as a forgotten utility deposit, a final paycheck, an expired life insurance policy or liquidated stock shares. Holders of such assets are required to submit them to the State Treasury once it becomes apparent that they are abandoned.

The Treasury then attempts to find the holders through several different means of outreach, including a website database, the efforts of a field representatives and a bulletin distributed twice a year in newspapers across the state.