The 39th annual Fire Truck Parade & Muster is a Littleton community celebration for our hometown heroes the first responders, wildland and urban firefighters, EMS personnel, and 911 dispatchers who make our neighborhoods safe. A Father’s Day weekend tradition, the Muster is presented by Mile High Hook & Ladder (MHHL) – an all-volunteer, nonprofit antique fire truck club “dedicated to the preservation, restoration, and operation of fire apparatus in America”. Held in partnership with South Metro Fire Rescue (SMFR), this free, fun, educational event takes place on Saturday, June 14th.

The parade begins at 9 am at the corner of South Bannock and Littleton Blvd. where a procession of antique rigs and modern in-service fire/rescue apparatus will head west on Main Street, turn south on South Curtice St., then “muster” (gather) from 10 am to 1 pm at Arapahoe Community College (ACC), 5900 S. Santa Fe.

At ACC, attendees can learn about disaster preparedness, wildland fire safety and mitigation, the importance of smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors, take a fire truck ride, climb in and on a variety of first responder emergency vehicles, including SMFR and US Forest Service brush trucks; meet the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s office SWAT team and members of Colorado Task Force 1 which responds to disasters nationwide; explore the Muster marketplace where they can pick up safety, health and wellness tips from area hospitals, the American Red Cross, Salvation Army and learn CPR from South Metro Safety Foundation technicians.

We’ve learned from the destructive L.A. fires, Marshall Fire in Boulder County and last year’s wildfire west of Ken Caryl Valley that urban conflagrations are becoming the norm. MHHL has invited the Rotary Club of Evergreen to bring its impressive Wildfire Ready educational fire truck equipped with brochures on what to include in an emergency “Go Bag”, plus fire mitigation dioramas showing how to create defensible space and fire-resistant landscaping around your home.

This year, the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control will land its powerful FireHawk fire suppression helicopter at ACC, and debut their home fire safety trailers. According to spokesperson, Kim Spuhler, their Side-by-Side Burn Demonstration will highlight the critical difference a closed door can make during a home fire (“close before you doze”) an unforgettable visual that reinforces just how simple actions can save lives. “This engaging, hands-on experience offers an immersive opportunity to learn life-saving skills through critical thinking, physical activity, and real-world hazard recognition. She adds, “Families will walk away empowered with practical knowledge and inspired to have meaningful conversations about fire safety at home.”

During SMFR’s crowd-pleasing auto extrication demonstration, firefighters will pry apart a crashed car with a Jaws of Life to remove an accident “victim”. Children’s Hospital Colorado Children’s One Flight Team will then land their neonatal/pediatric emergency helicopter nearby.

Members of SMFR’s Explorer Program, Civil Air Patrol and Arapahoe Rescue Patrol will be on hand to help junior firefighters shoot high-pressure fire hoses and provide security during the auto extrication and helicopter landings. The South Metro Safety Foundation is bringing Engine 1/2, a scaled-down fire truck equipped with kid-sized bunker gear.  Join “Neighbors Helping Neighbors” by helping build safer communities one household – one neighborhood — at a time.