One hundred Canadian firefighters left Sept. 28 to go back to Canada and to their families after weeks of fighting fires in Washington state. They obviously did not have to be so selfless and generous, but the Canadians want to demonstrate being neighborly and to show their friendship with the USA. I hope that every Whatcom County resident who regularly complains about Canadians coming here to shop feels about an inch tall right now. As for myself, I greatly appreciate Canadians and I offer a thank you to Canada and especially to the British Columbia firefighters.

Mike McDonald

Maple Falls