$250,000 plus donations from the public. Elections for these positions are annual and voted by the department at an annual meeting. The department uses a point system, (i.e. 1 point for each call, or a training) The department is limited by its charter with the town to 60 Members. Members are eligible to receive a tax abatement from the town for earning a minimum of 150 points. The tax abatement is limited to 1 per household, so families with more than one member are not eligible to receive more than one tax abatement. The Fire Department responds to about 1000 calls each year, mostly medical first response calls, and fire alarms. -Essex Ambulance Association, Inc. is an independent association, receiving town funding for workers' compensation insurance only. The association was founded in 1964, and is composed of 32 volunteers with MRT and EMT certification levels. The association operates three ambulances which respond to over 900 calls for service each year, and provides mutual aide to all surrounding towns. Elections for officers are held annually. The association is self-sufficient, funded through billing and donations. The ambulance receives an intercept paramedic for Advanced Life Support when needed through Middlesex Hospital. Libraries There are two libraries in Essex: the Essex Library, located next to the Town Hall (corner of Grove St. and West Ave.) and one in the center of Ivoryton, the Ivoryton Library.] A resident can obtain a single card for both libraries. The Essex Library was recently rebuilt and is a center of the community, providing nearly 400 free programs a year for children and adults. It is an association library with 501(c)(3) non-profit status. Other The one Lutheran Church sits on Main Street in Centerbrook. There is a building which once housed a Methodist church on the corner of Prospect Street and Main Street, but it is no longer in use. The First Baptist Church of Essex, Connecticut, built in 1846, is notable for being one of only three Egyptian revival churches known to have ever been built in the United States. The architect was Minard Lafever. There is also one Catholic Church, Our Lady of Sorrows, on Prospect Street in Essex Village, just a short walk from Essex downtown. After being destroyed by a fire in 1925, the new church was built on the foundations of an abandoned inn. Recently, the parish joined with the Chester, CT parish church,