For many years, the Easter Bunny didn’t hop into Ironton but instead hitched a ride on a firetruck.

This year, the Bunny received more than a lift when it comes to the Ironton Business Association’s annual Lawrence County Courthouse Easter egg hunt.

The longstanding event that attracts hundreds of youth from across the region was in serious jeopardy — in fact it was downright canceled — until the Ironton Fire Department stepped up and made sure this institution didn’t fall by the wayside.

Time constraints, personal issues and general lack of volunteers left the IBA ready to concede the event until next year. Enter the firefighters.

We applaud the department for taking the initiative to keep this tradition going. Fighting blazes and responding to car crashes are the important jobs these individuals do but the value of this community service shouldn’t be overlooked either.

The Easter egg hunt may only take 15 minutes from start to finish but most people don’t know that the work starts days earlier with the stuffing of the 1,200 plastic eggs.

While the Easter Bunny may have rabbit ears, he (or she) might as well be wearing a fireman’s hat this year.