Lions Club Semi-Annual Pancake Breakfast Brings Community Together

Members of the Grand Terrace community gathered together from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. this past Sunday, Oct. 25 at the Lions Club Community Center off Barton Road for a home-made pancake breakfast. The Grand Terrace Lions Club in its semi-annual event served almost 600 pancake breakfasts that included fresh juice, coffee, fruit, pancakes, sausage, and eggs. The breakfast was all you can eat with pre-sale tickets costing $4 and $5 at the door. The proceeds earned from this event benefited members of the varsity football team at Grand Terrace High School. Members of the football team and Boy Scout Troop 40 worked together in setting up, serving food, and clean-up of the event. In the past, the Semi-Annual Pancake Event has helped community libraries, schools, and the Veterans Freedom Wall. According to President of the Grand Terrace Lion Club, Kirk McVey, the Lions Club has a good facility to do the event and is always looking for ways to help the community. In this event the Lions Club is in charge of cooking the food while the organization that is sponsored sells the tickets. McVey commented that this was one of their largest turnouts, with Grand Terrace Football Team having sold over 600 pre-sale tickets. “It is great to see the success and the people working together in the community,” McVey commented. According to Coach Ryan Smalls, close to 75% of the team was in attendance helping out in the event “in whatever way they could.” Smalls added that the members of the team were gaining more than funds from participating in the pancake breakfast, that they were gaining the balance of being both athletes and strong members of the community. “Somebody will have a connection with somebody over something today. They’re making a good time. There is something new you can learn today.” The sentiment of supporting the community was large among members who attended. Various attendees came to support friends and loved ones on the football team, in the Lions Club or in the Boy Scouts. Junior Joyce Simonson who came to support of her boyfriend on the team, enjoyed meeting the different range of people who came out. “The food was great and with great people. It is a fun little get together,” Simonson added. Community member Leslie Gregory came to support her friend Trina Manson, whose son Justyn Bass is on the football team. “This is my first time attending. I think it’s very sweet and well attended. You can tell there is a sense of community here,” Gregory stated. Trina Manson was impressed with the responsibility her son had gained from being a member of the football team and participating in a community event like the pancake breakfast. Manson hopes for the football team that they “will get a better sense of the community” from the event. “I hope they will build a sense of comrade and teamwork,” Manson added. Junior football player Adam Gomez was happy to see the large turnout and support from the community. “We want to help the community. We are more than a football program, we are student athletes that want to help people,” Gomez said. Gomez team member Mathew Morales was grateful for those who took the time to attend. “We’d like to thank everyone for showing up. It shows how much love and support the community has for us,” Morales said. The community of Grand Terrace showed tremendous support for the Semi-Annual Pancake Breakfast this year. With attendance doubled, the Lions Club Pancake Chairman, Steven Barton, added, “It went well. It was a great collaboration between the Grand Terrace Lions Club and Grand Terrace High School Football team. The kids are having a great time! I know they appreciated everyone who came out and supported the event.”