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Pancakes and purpose bring Washington together at fire station
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
WASHINGTON — By midmorning, the Washington Fire Station was filled with the steady rhythm of griddles, conversation and the unmistakable smell of pancakes soaking up butter and syrup. Families, co-workers and retirees flowed through the doors, plates in hand, settling in wherever there was room to sit and talk, Wednesday, Jan. 7.
Washington Fireman’s Pancake Day has never been just about pancakes or fundraising. It is about neighbors eating shoulder to shoulder, firefighters trading turnout gear for aprons, and a community quietly supporting a department that helps save lives.
This year, the annual breakfast did all of that again, serving thousands in a single day and raising enough money to fully fund new safety equipment firefighters say can make the difference between life and death.
“It was chaotic and fun,” said Andy Miller, the firefighter who coordinates the event. “We served about 2,300, and it was a great time, good turnout.”
Inside the station, the pace rarely slowed for lunch or supper service. Volunteers flipped stacks of pancakes with assembly-line precision, trying, as Miller put it, to “cook 10–12 pancakes every eight minutes.”
Eggs sizzled by the hundreds, roughly 6,600 of them by the end of the day, alongside sausage patties that disappeared almost as quickly as they hit the plates. The doors stayed open despite the cold, a practical decision and a symbolic one.
“It’s hard to even picture how many cases of eggs that is,” Miller said. “By the end of the day, the smell of eggs was everywhere in the station.”
According to Miller, the focus on community has defined Pancake Day since long before he took over as organizer. He estimates the tradition began in the early 1960s, with older firefighters recalling flipping
The longevity matters, but so does what the breakfast supports.
This year’s goal focused on purchasing Compact Thermal Imaging Cameras, known in the fire service as TICs. The devices allow firefighters to see heat signatures through smoke, helping them locate hot spots and, more critically, find people who may be trapped and unconscious.
Bruce McAvoy, a Washington firefighter, demonstrated one of the cameras at the station, pulling the compact unit from its mount on his air pack. He described how the tool changes what firefighters can do inside a burning structure.
The goal, he said, was to raise enough money to purchase four of the cameras, one for each primary response position, at about $1,200 apiece. The community delivered.
“Yes, we raised enough money that we could fund all those and then a little bit reserved,” Miller said. “So if we unfortunately would break one or need to send one off, we can get a replacement in right away. We’re pretty fortunate that the community supports us in that way.”
McAvoy explained why the newer cameras matter.
“These connect right to our air packs, and it’s out of the way and compact,” he said. “It gives us good situational awareness. We can pull it out, let it retract, keep on moving, keep your hands free.”
That practicality resonates with the firefighters who carry what McAvoy described as “a lot of stuff” into every call.
At the equipment table, located along the long line for pancakes, McAvoy paused to talk with a young boy who pointed at an ax and declared it the coolest thing on display. McAvoy picked it up and explained what it was used for, describing it as one of the “keys to the city.”
“With these two tools, we can get through any door. It’s not going to look pretty afterward, though,” he said lightheartedly.
This exchanged gave opportunity for McAvoy to not only connect with those attending the breakfast, but offer some insight into what firefighters carry with them into emergencies and why those tools matter. It was the kind of interaction that happens repeatedly during Pancake Day.
“Pancake Day isn’t really about raising funds,” Miller said. “Yes, it’s a great fundraiser, and we raise a lot of money for those incidental things that we need all the time. But it really, truly is a community event.”
The crowd reflected that sentiment. Families lingered at tables long after their plates were empty. Workers ducked in during lunch hours, sometimes stretching breaks longer than usual with employers’ blessing. Conversations stalled lines as people stopped to catch up, prompting gentle reminders from organizers to keep moving.
“People don’t seem to mind the wait,” Miller said. “Especially because it was nice weather this year. There were times when I had to ask people to keep moving along even though they were going to miss that person they were talking to.”
Some attendees even built travel plans around the meal. Miller recalled one man who lives on the East Coast but delayed returning home after the holidays so his family could attend Pancake Day.
“Little things like that,” he said. “It truly is that community engagement.”
The sense of shared ownership extended beyond Washington. Any unopened supplies left after the breakfast will be passed along to the Kalona Fire Department hosting its own pancake day later this spring, a quiet reciprocity common among fire departments.
“We help each other out,” Miller said.
Even during the busiest moments, the breakfast kept flowing because of all those that lent a hand during the meal. At one point, a call came in, and a truck rolled out before being told to disregard just a couple of blocks away. The response was seamless, with off-duty firefighters and community members stepping in without prompting.
“I had six different guys say, ‘Hey, do you need help?’” Miller said. “’I’ll go flip pancakes. I’ll help with carryouts.’”
That willingness reflects how residents see the fire department, and how firefighters see themselves.
“If you talk to any firefighter, police officer, even the city guys, we don’t see ourselves as heroes,” Miller said. “It’s a job that we love to do. When you come to work and you love it, it’s not work.”
Pancake Day offers a rare window into the breadth of that work. Washington firefighters serve not only as fire suppression and EMS providers but also as a dive team and technical rescue unit, roles many residents only glimpse during emergencies.
This year, the annual breakfast continued doing what it always has: bringing people into the station, feeding them well and reminding them why the tradition endures. Families come year after year. Firefighters return even after retirement. The tools on the tables change, but the purpose does not.
“My family comes, and a lot of families come and just enjoy it,” Miller said.
In a world that often feels hurried and fractured, Washington Fireman’s Pancake Day remains stubbornly simple. It asks people to wait in line, share a table and support those who will show up when alarms ring. The community answers, one plate at a time.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
