The City of Sparks Fire Department is getting ready to host its 33rd annual Pancake Breakfast on September 30 from 8 a.m. to noon to be held at Fire Station 1 at 1605 Victorian Avenue.
Sparks Mayor Ed Lawson, city councilmembers, firefighters, and staff will all be part of the action in cooking and serving up pancakes, eggs, sausage, juice, coffee, and milk. The 33rd Annual Pancake Breakfast will also include live kitchen fire demonstrations, fire safety trailer exhibits, station tours, educational displays, and jaws of life vehicle extractions. Kids can also take part in junior firefighter challenges and take their picture with Sparky the fire dog.
New Sparks Fire Chief Walt White will be there flipping pancakes alongside Mayor Lawson and city councilmembers; this will be the first Sparks Pancake Breakfast he’ll be attending in his new role. Since he’s become fire chief, White says he’s focusing on innovation, infrastructure, inclusion, and working with Sparks’ allied agencies concerning fire protection. The Sparks Police Department will also be at the Pancake Breakfast sharing information about proper medication disposal.
“[The Pancake Breakfast] will be a combination of public interaction and education,” Chief White says.
White began his fire service career as a volunteer at a fire department in Novato, California, before becoming a seasonal firefighter in Marin County and then working as a medical technician in San Francisco. He was later appointed the fire chief for the City of Sacramento, the first one given the role outside of the city, much like the City of Sparks. He was there for 27 years before retiring in 2018.
However, White says that while retiring felt like the right thing to do at the time, he had a genuine interest in fire service and came out of retirement to serve Amador County. The City of Sparks selected Walt White to serve as its next fire chief in February 2023.
“My daughter just started attending UNR [University of Nevada, Reno] and we were coming up here to visit her and we enjoy the area,” White says, adding that he’s happy to have the opportunity to have dinner with her at least once a week.
New City of Sparks Fire Marshal Patrick Chew will also be attending the Pancake Breakfast. Chew worked at the Roseville Fire Department for 16 years before taking a job at Amador County, “an area with lots of trees”, he says. While at Amador County, he was involved with several major fire campaigns including the Butte Fire and Caldor Fire. He went from working on pavement (with the City of Roseville) back to country back to “home” in a place like Sparks. Chew explains that in Amador County, a good percentage of the population are seniors, and he would stress the importance of “hardening your house” against wildfires because winds carry fast and can easily cause a spark.
Since taking his job as the fire marshal of Sparks, Chew has been trying to meet community members every day and is looking forward to the upcoming Pancake Breakfast.
“It’s the best part of the job. We help citizens and businesses stay open. We’re not out to shut them down, our focus is to keep them in business,” Chew says.
Shortly after becoming the City’s new fire marshal, Chew says he was honored to be one of the judges at the recent Best in the West Rib Cookoff.
“I thought we were just going out to lunch for the day, and I ended up judging the event, which was great because I love ribs,” he laughs. “Mayor Lawson and I both picked the same number, but that team didn’t win. Those ribs were so good, though.”
Chew adds that he’s been going at warp speed ever since joining the Sparks Fire Department and believes that all of the recent changes happening in the department have been extremely positive. He’s heard that close to 500-600 people may be attending the Pancake Breakfast and is looking forward to it.
“I really enjoy networking and talking to people; and genuinely feel the support of the City and fire department. I’ve been fortunate in the past to have good leaders who empower us and are good at succession planning, training, and revenue building. I’m having a blast so far, to be perfectly honest,” Chew says.
The Sparks Fire Department requests a $5 donation for a breakfast, and children under 12 and seniors 62 and older are free. NV Energy has helped sponsor the Pancake Breakfast, helping to reduce the costs of this event. The funds generated from the Pancake Breakfast will go back into local community public fire safety education programs. Other parking will be available at 247 15th Street.
White adds, “I encourage the public to come out and enjoy a good breakfast, and learn how to avoid wildfires, talk to the police department about properly disposal of medications, and even avoid getting scammed since there’s a lot of that going on right now. This is a big community education opportunity for all of us”.
When asked if he has any special technique for making the perfect pancake, White smiles, “I just let them rise and flip them when they turn golden brown”.
For more information about the 33rd Annual Sparks Fire Department Pancake Breakfast, visit cityofsparks.us.
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