AUBURN - The big yellow Sennett Fire Department truck rolled into the parking lot of Casey Park Saturday afternoon, not for a call, but for a pull.

The fifth-annual Law Enforcement Torch Run Fire Truck Pull combined trucks and muscles to benefit the Special Olympics

The pull started in Auburn, when Mike Murray, a correctional officer and member of the state Torch Run committee, heard about a similar event in Attica.

“I thought why not try to do something like that here,” Murray, the event coordinator, said. “It's much more of a testosterone thing there. Here we make it more about fun and get the athletes (Special Olympic athletes) involved in this as much as we can. Even the ones in wheelchairs get out there and help their teams pull.”

The event is a fundraiser for Special Olympics and falls under the Torch Run name, an event where participants from the field of law enforcement run the ceremonial torch from city to city to light the opening ceremony fire at the state games, which were held in Albany this year.

These events have become huge fundraising efforts from all over the world.

“It is a real grassroots fundraiser,” said Renee Snyder, director of development and special events for Special Olympics based in Schenectady. “We have people all over the world, 35 countries that participate, more than 85,000 police officers. They were able to raise $26 million last years and New York alone raised over $400,000.”

These kinds of fundraising events are crucial to the goals of Special Olympics.

“This is how we support what we do,” said Jeffrey Mickle, program director for Special Olympics from Syracuse. “The athletes don't pay for anything. We pay for them to compete, we feed them and give them a place to stay and we are able to do that through the efforts of fundraisers like this.”

Year after year the fire truck pull has continued to grow, drawing more and more teams of participants and raising more and more funds.

“We get more and more every year,” Murray said. “We have athletes from Onondaga, Madison and Cayuga County here and every year we get more and more and we get more local businesses sponsoring teams. It just keeps picking up ever year. Last year it even rained and everyone stayed until the very end.”

Murray said that while it varies from year to year the pull generally raises between $6,000 and $10,000 - all going to help support Special Olympics.

Many local businesses like Wal-Mart, Auburn Correctional Facility and the Doubledays get teams together to compete alongside Special Olympics athletes in an effort to pull, in a tug-of-war fashion, the fire truck about 10 feet.

This has drawn together a dedicated and eager group of athletes that look forward to the pull each and every year.

“I've been here every year,” said Mildred Egan, a Special Olympics competitor from Auburn. “The games are a lot of fun and you get to know a lot of people and this is really fun, too.”

And even with the help of an entire team pulling together, moving a fire truck is no easy small task, but the challenge and accomplishment can be pretty rewarding.

“It's a lot of fun,” said Nancy Schillace, of Auburn. “It's good to come out and support our teammates and support the games too, that makes it a lot of fun.”

And as the crowd cheered on each team as they struggled and strained with the truck, the focus of the day was never lost.

“It's really all about these athletes,” Mickle said. “That is the win-win of this. We get to break down some barriers and let the people in the community get to know these athletes and help open up their eyes a little bit about what the Special Olympics are all about.”