Albert Lea firefighters collected $4,500 in donations during its annual Fill the Boot fundraiser last week for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Though this was far from the total collected by Austin firefighters during the previous week — more than $16,000 — local firefighters said they still thought the fundraiser was a success.

“We want to thank the community for their generosity,” said Albert Lea Fire Lt. Al Schallock.

This was the first year Albert Lea firefighters had been stationed on the streets collecting money; in prior years, they collected money during the Third of July Parade and at the Northbridge Mall.

Dressed in their full gear — minus their jackets — the firefighters carried signs and boots last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, asking for donations at the corner of Main Street and Broadway Avenue.

Before the local fundraiser began, Schallock had issued a friendly competition between the Albert Lea and Austin fire departments to see who could raise the most money for the national campaign.

Austin’s total of more than $16,000 from the previous week was the most that department had ever raised. In 2009, they raised $14,000, making them one of the most successful stations per firefighter in the upper Midwest.

Schallock said though local firefighters didn’t come close to the Austin amount, it gives them something to strive for.

He said he and the other firefighters will review the fundraiser to decide if they’d like to continue it in the same fashion next year.

All donations made stay local, supporting area families with equipment, supplies, specialty clinics and support groups. Seventy-six percent of all money goes directly back to families; 15 percent goes toward education and 9 percent goes toward fundraising.

MDA has partnered with the International Association of Fire Fighters since 1954 for the fundraiser, and in 2009 alone, firefighters across the country raised more than $28.1 million to support research, clinics, support groups and summer camps, according to a press release.