For the 73rd year, hundreds of people devoured stacks of piping hot pancakes smothered in butter and maple syrup with a side of sausage links at an annual rite of spring…the Kiwanis Club of Kewanee’s Pancake Day.
Club members estimated this year’s crowd surpassed 1,000 people after last year’s turnout fell just four servings short of 900. Proceeds go to support youth activities in the community, mainly through eight organizations — K-Kids at Central and Wethersfield elementary schools, Builders Clubs at Central, Visitation and Wethersfield junior high schools, Key Clubs at Kewanee and Wethersfield high schools, and Circle K International at Black Hawk College East Campus.
The first Kiwanis Pancake Day was held on Monday, May 7, 1951 with Pierce’s Restaurant, in the 200 block of West Second Street, donating the facility. Monday was chosen because it was the only day of the week that the restaurant was closed and available, according to a newspaper account.
Pierce’s, a popular local dining establishment, was destroyed by fire on Feb. 2, 1963 and the location is now a vacant lot. The event was then held at Kewanee High School until 1967 when it was moved to its present location, the First United Methodist Church.
At first, Pancake Day was an all-day event, from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. with the time shifting later to 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., while maintaining the all-day schedule.
In 2011, Angie Burford, Pancake Day chairman at the time, came up with the idea of moving the day to Saturday and shortening the hours to 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. since turnout after 1 p.m. had been dwindling for years.
Advantages included making it possible for more members who worked during the week to be involved and, on a Saturday, more members of the student organizations Kiwanis sponsors could help.
In past years students weren’t available until after school and by then, there was little for them to do, but “stand around,” Burford said. Now, an army of young people does the bulk of serving seconds, filling and refilling drinks, and clearing off the tables.
But not everyone was happy with the move away from Monday. Burford said she faced some opposition from “We’ve always done it that way” members, but when the move to a different day and shorter hours began drawing bigger crowds and raising more funds, the dissenters were silenced.
“Working from setting up at 6 a.m. to finishing cleanup around 10 also made for a very long, tiring day,” Burford said. “On Saturday we have more help and it takes less time to do everything that needs to be done.”
Not even COVID could stop Pancake Day. For two years, — 2020 and 2021 — when public gatherings were not permitted, the club developed a drive-through system which has continued to be used every year since, in addition to the previously offered dine-in and carryout options.
In 1951, the event was advertised as “All the pancakes you can eat, sausage and coffee, for 75 cents.” Of course, times and costs have changed dramatically in 73 years. The current ticket price is $10 with kids 6 and under eating free.
Club member Everett Whitcher brought out his pocket calculator to figure that this year’s event required 400 pounds of sausage and 144 boxes of pancake mix which produced 300 pounds of batter. Last year’s Pancake Day drew 896 hungry eaters and he was confident they would exceed the 1,000 mark this year. That matches the 1951 total of 1,000 served by 65 Kiwanis members. Today, the club has 102 members.
In 1951 practically all of the food was donated by national concerns, according to newspaper accounts, and a champion pancake eater was named…Lee Underwood, who reportedly consumed 21 cakes.
Proceeds that first year were earmarked for “children’s projects,” such as free dental work, free tonsillectomies, and a trip to Brookfield Zoo that summer for two bus loads of children.
