Is There a Pancake Feed by the Kiwanis at the Fair Grounds Sat Jan 12
The Gadsden Kiwanis Club's longstanding tradition of Pancake Day returns on Saturday.
The event will take place at The Venue at Coosa Landing after being postponed in August 2021 because of a rise in cases of COVID-19, specifically from the delta variant.
Serving hours are 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. A $5 donation gets pancakes, sausage and a beverage.
"This will be our first event in two years," Morgan Cunningham, vice president of the Kiwanis Club, said. "With the COVID-19 numbers going back down as they are, we felt that it was safe enough to bring this event back."
Traditionally held on the third Saturday in February, the event has not been held on that date since the start of the pandemic, being pushed back several times because the club did not want this event to be a "superspreader event" for the community.
"This was a decision based upon the advice of our local experts and on the health and safety of our members and our community," the club said in a press statement announcing last year's cancellation.
Cunningham said there will be several precautions taken Saturday to keep residents as safe as possible, such as a takeout window to pick up food and a drive-thru service.
"The Venue is also a rather large space itself, so I believe we will be able to spread out enough to keep people safe," he said.
A tradition of giving back
Pancake Day dates back to 1958, after then-club President Nelson Thomas had ingredients donated for the event and held it at its first location, at 514 Broad St. It quickly outgrew that space and moved to Gadsden's Municipal Auditorium, later Convention Hall, where it was held annually until it moved to The Venue in 2019.
As a result of the success of Pancake Day and other events the club hosts throughout the year, it has been able to give back nearly $2 million to the community.
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Cunningham said the money raised goes to the club's scholarship program for high school students, as well as its partnership with the Salvation Army to distribute presents and bikes at Christmas.
Cunningham extended thanks to Buffalo Rock and Osborne Foods, as they are the ones that supply the food items necessary to make their "largest fundraiser" each year possible.
"The City of Gadsden is also great, as they will store our grills and cooking equipment we use and set it up at The Venue for us. We also have volunteers from student organizations such as our local Key Clubs, Builders Club and Gadsden State's Circle K that we couldn't do any of this without," he said.
Tickets can be purchased onsite at the event, from any Kiwanis Club member or online at https://www.gadsdenkiwanis.org. Businesses also can purchase sponsorships that will be showcased on a digital screen throughout the event.
Pancake Day by the numbers
Kiwanis Club President Misty Ledbetter said organizers expect to feed about 5,000 people at Saturday's event; about 200 people will volunteer to help keep the event running smoothly.
According to Ledbetter, they will use about 320 bags of pancake batter, which equals out to 40 cases worth. Additionally, 25 cases of syrup traditionally are used, but the club has opted to 12,000 takeout packets of syrup this year.
"We will also use about 40 cases worth of sausage, or 1,920 pounds of meat," she said.
Ledbetter said the club hopes to make "around $40,000 to help" with scholarships and the Salvation Army partnership.
This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Gadsden Kiwanis Club's Pancake Day set for Saturday at The Venue
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Source: https://news.yahoo.com/kiwanis-pancake-day-returns-saturday-030017395.html