DOWAGIAC — As planes fly through the sky next weekend, area residents will have a chance to get to know their local firefighters better over a cup of coffee and a pancake.

The Dowagiac Fire Department will host a pancake breakfast fundraiser from 7 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the Dowagiac Municipal Airport, 710 W. Prairie Ronde St., Dowagiac. The breakfast, which will feature pancakes, sausage and orange juice, is being hosted at the Dowagiac Fly In, an annual event where area planes and tractors will be on display for the public. The breakfast will cost $7 for adults and $3.50 for children.

“This is an event for the community to come check us out, see the planes, see the tractors and come eat some pancakes,” said Lt. Anthony Stewart, an organizer of the breakfast. “This will also give us the chance to raise some funds.”

Proceeds from the pancake breakfast fundraiser will be split between the fire department and the airport, Stewart said. The department is looking to raise $500, which would go toward its general fund, which can help purchase new equipment as necessary.

In addition to raising funds for the department, the pancake breakfast will allow the fire department to get out into the community, which has been a goal of the department.

“Community involvement is so important,” Stewart said. “Most of the time, when we are being called, it is at the worst moment of someone’s life. You don’t call 911 because everything is OK. So, [community events] let people meet us on a regular basis and just see that we are here to serve the community and help them.”

In years past, the department hosted frequent fundraisers and community events, but they have died down due to lack of participation, Stewart said. This year, the department has made a concentrated effort to get out into the community and is working on hosting three fundraisers a year. The pancake breakfast will be the second of the year. The first was a corn and sausage fundraiser hosted in June. At the first fundraiser, Stewart said the department had an encouraging amount of participation from the community and raised $700.

“We are kind of on an upswing right now, and we have a lot of people in the department that want to be a part of these events. We are trying to show the community that we are here, and we are not going anywhere,” Stewart said. “We are trying to make a deeper connection to the community. We want to continue to have successful fundraisers and keep involving the community.”

Stewart said he hopes to personally get to know some community members at the breakfast, and he would encourage anyone to attend.

“It’s great to see people here and hanging out and seeing what we do,” he said.