I’m A Clubwoman

1,000 Cups of Coffee and Sweet Valentines

by christy on 02/13/09 at 1:23 pm

Christy and fellow club woman Connie

Last Saturday, I put on my best valentines apron, picked up a coffee pitcher, and took my place with other women in our community at the Lion’s Club Annual Pancake and Sausage breakfast. On the scale of community events – this one ranks right up at the top for our little town of Bismarck.

My husband’s birthday was the day before the breakfast. When I asked him if he would like to leave town for the weekend – to celebrate his birthday – he insisted there was no way we could miss the pancake breakfast. I grew up in a city, so the traditions of small-town, Midwestern farming communities are all new to me.  My husband, on the other hand, has been coming to this annual breakfast since he was a child. This year he flipped sausage patties in the kitchen and his dad served pancakes but in years past it was his grandfather flipping the pancakes.

As the Llion’s prepared pancakes and sausage, local women served coffee and second helpings, and boy scouts cleared and reset the tables. I particularly enjoyed walking over to tables with children and their parents and offering seconds on chocolate milk. I know their parents were thinking – they do not need any more sugar – but they gave in, because hey, it’s the pancake and sausage breakfast. It’s like Christmas – it’s only once a year. The chocolate milk seconds definitely made me a hero with more than one group of kids.

This multi-generational tradition serves about 1,000 community members a year – only, there aren’t 1,000 people in our community. People from across the regional area come out of the woodwork for this breakfast. Just pull one of the older women aside and ask her – this event draws a crowd rain or shine, snow or otherwise.

I’m sure the women of the Bismarck Women’s club will be reading this thinking, of course it does Christy. But I was definitely in shock at my first pancake breakfast when everyone I had EVER met in the town of Bismarck arrived. If you live in Bismarck, and you AREN’T at the pancake breakfast – it’s because you’re sick. But don’t worry, someone will bring by a few pancakes for you.

This year, the Lion’s gave our Women’s Club permission to host a bake sale in the lobby. As people were waiting in line for their pancakes (and there is ALWAYS a line) they purchased our baked wares. We brought valentine cupcakes, petit fours, mini loaves of bread, and breakfast muffins of every variety.

We also unveiled the first photo of the play structure we plan to purchase for the park. The kids were ecstatic. One of the boy scouts even asked me if we could get a few of those things for his school.

I love events like this because I can really see the depth of support in our community. Thanks to the generous people of Bismarck, (and the surrounding area), we sold every last cupcake and loaf of bread. We raised $300 which we will put towards the park playground equipment. Thank you Bismarck! Thank you Lion’s Club!