At any hour and in any weather, two retired firefighters dedicate themselves to assisting fire departments in emergency calls across McHenry County by keeping bellies full and hearts warm.

The Salvation Army of McHenry County, based in Crystal Lake, has been silently providing emergency disaster services for decades through a mobile canteen that provides food and beverages to responders and survivors. For the past seven years, only two volunteers have been behind that canteen: retired firefighters Tom Allen and Pat Trunda.

“It’s kind of in our blood,” Allen said. “We’re used to getting up at all hours of the night and in all kinds of weather.”

The duo has been working together for over four decades, having been hired together by the Wheeling Fire Department in 1980. They’re both inspired to volunteer because of the impact Salvation Army volunteers had on them when they were firefighters.

“We’re giving back to the community, but we’re also giving back to the people before us,” Trunda said.

Trunda and Allen respond to local fires in McHenry County by driving the nonprofit’s emergency canteen to scenes. They fuel the firefighters who are often there for hours with coffee, chili, water, Gatorade, hot chocolate and other snacks. On hot days, they also have an ice mister to cool down first responders.

“If we’re hungry, I know they’re hungry,” Trunda said. “We can fuel the fire department during those cold nights.”

A new, upgraded emergency canteen was unveiled in April. It has already been deployed several times, serving more than 500 drinks and more than 200 snacks since arriving in February, according to a previous Salvation Army news release.

As retired fire crew members, they say it’s “full circle” to see firefighters they have trained out in the field responding to the same calls.

Their volunteer load can be “sporadic,” Trunda said. Sometimes, they can go a few weeks without calls. Other times, they have gotten as many as three calls in 24 hours.

Allen, a Lakewood resident, and Trunda, a Cary resident, also both taught for the McHenry County College Fire Service Training program. Allen also serves as a trustee for the MCC Board of Education, and his son is a firefighter for the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District.

The team of two is committed to the job, no matter what circumstances are thrown their way. Allen remembers one hot summer day when his wife picked up hundreds of pounds of ice to keep the ice mister going. She parked as close as she could, and Allen and Trunda walked the bags, one by one, to the scene.

Trunda recalls the search for 5-year-old AJ Freund in 2019. He was in the hospital recovering from surgery. When he was released to go home, Trunda immediately joined Allen in helping aid the searchers.

Almost every call they respond to is documented on their Facebook page, McHenry County Rehab Canteen.

Sometimes, they’re called outside of the county because reliable volunteers like Allen and Trunda are few and far between. Allen has seen other communities lose emergency canteens because there were no volunteers to man them.

“It’s a shame,” he said.

It’s hard to find other volunteers to expand their fleet – especially those willing to be on call 24/7.

“It’s a tough thing to find someone who understands the commitment,” Trunda said.

They hope to pass the torch to other firefighters when they are ready to retire. In the meantime, it’s Trunda and Allen who always have their phones nearby for the next emergency.

“We just enjoy what we’re doing,” Allen said.