The smell of pancakes and sausage, no better way to start a Saturday morning.
The Manhattan Kiwanis Club held their biggest fundraiser of the year with their 70th annual pancake feed and silent auction.
A constant flow of community members came through Pottorf Hall at Cico Park Saturday morning to enjoy pancakes, sausage, eggs, and, of course, good company. Kiwanis Club secretary, Kitty Pursley, shares more about what it means to be celebrating the 70th year.
“It’s pretty awesome for any service organization to be going for so many years, and to continue the same event with the success that we’ve had, is great.”
Pursley says while there is still a lot of preparation for the event, she says, at this point, the pancake feed nearly runs itself and the community is used to it. They aren’t only used to the event, but also the Kiwanis Club in general. The organization will celebrate 100 years of being in the Manhattan community in 2022. Pursley adds that their organization and their mission are part of the history here in Manhattan.
“Our primary focus is children. Our mission is to improve the world one community and one child at a time.”
One way in which the program does that is by supporting programs in the community such as the Boys and Girls Club, Crisis Center, and The Flint Hills Breadbasket. Pursley says funds from the pancake feed also are large contributors to their scholarships for secondary education.
“This year we did five scholarships over $1000 to whatever institution, secondary education, and we do 4-H scholarships.”
Pursley adds that the Kiwanis Club is also active in the community, taking on projects such as the Bluemont Hill Overlook project. She says in 1927, the club built the Manhattan letters and now they are part of the maintenance of them, cleaning them twice a year.
“We have now built an overlook platform at Bluemont Hill, it is handicapped accessible, and we have plans to do more whether it’s a shelter, or sidewalks, or a platform on the west side. We are going to continue that area because that is kind of our signature theme here in Manhattan.”
Pursley says the community has been everything in making all of these things happen, especially with their support of the annual pancake feed. She adds that without the businesses stepping in with silent auction items, volunteers giving up time to flip pancakes, and members of the Kiwanis Club making decorations and helping put the event together, the fundraising opportunity wouldn’t be possible.
“It’s a privilege to actually be part of an organization that has so many years of dedication to the community.”
An official fundraising total from the pancake feed is still pending.
