The all-volunteer Arlington Heights Fire Department took their dedication a step further, volunteering to get out of bed July 4 to serve pancakes to more than 1,000 Arlington residents.

“It’s a lot of work,” said association president Daniel Britton, who helped lead the effort. “I was here this morning at 5. It takes a good month of preparation to pull this off.”

The more than 20 firefighters were joined in many cases by wives and children, who flipped cakes, cracked eggs and dolloped out strawberries and whipping cream to the hungry masses.

Pancakes are just the beginning of the day for Bob Robinson, a Phoenix resident who comes up every year for the festival and visits with his son, Steve.

“We have a barbecue over at my granddaughter’s house, then we usually go to the parade,” Robinson said. In past years, he added, he and his family would stay nearby in a motor home to watch the fireworks.

“This year went extremely well,” Britton said of the overall feed. “It started out steady.”

Britton added that George Willis of Silvana Meats donated all of the sausage consumed at the Haller Park meal.

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