GVACC feeds the community on Pancake Day

BY JOHN BRICE

THE LAFAYETTE SUN

CHAMBERS COUNTY — Families and friends gathered together for the recently renewed Pancake Day event at the Valley Community Center on the morning of Friday, Feb. 27. Tickets were available for pre-order or at the door which were redeemed for either an adult breakfast that included four pancakes, two sausage patties and a drink or a children’s breakfast consisting of two pancakes, a sausage patty and a drink as well. After being served their plates in the kitchen inside, the guests dined in a seating area that
had been set up in an adjacent portion of the gymnasium.

Director of the Valley Local Sarah Crutchfield said she was excited about the day’s success.

“It has been great,” she said. “We had lots of people show up. I would say the entire community has come to Pancake Day. We are so appreciative of that.”

Crutchfield said she enjoyed seeing the community come together to enjoy breakfast.

“The kitchen was full, we were in there flipping pancakes, looking down the hall and seeing the line of people come in,” she said. “[It was] super exciting to see families just be together and take the time to have breakfast together. That is the meaningful part of Pancake Day to me — seeing the community together, neighbors and all, talk to one another — it is great.”

Crutchfield said she was thankful for the several community leaders helped to make the day happen.

“Sheriff Nelson was here helping flip sausages this morning so we are very appreciative of that too,” she said. “We also had Paul Story — he was inside here flipping pancakes. Kiwanis Club of Valley was here helping us with pancakes. They did start this in 1960, and we brought it back last year with their help and [we were excited to bring it back again this year]. We look forward to next year, it will be the last Friday of February.”

Making Pancake Day come together does not happen by itself, Crutchfield said.

“We have a whole system,” she said. “There is a perfect technique that has been taught to us by the Kiwanis Club — the people that have done it for many, many years. They mix the batter, which is a big process in itself and then everyone starts making pancakes on griddles. Miss Terri Culpepper from Terri’s Mill Village Cafe also helped play a big part
in it as well. It is truly a community event, we have help from all over, and we couldn’t
do it without our small businesses.”

Pancakes can be a challenging dish to prepare, Crutchfield said time and care can make them perfect for a community breakfast.

“Once the bubbles are all the way across [the pancake] you flip it over and then it is good —made with love,” she said. “No grease is needed. It’s pretty simple, of course we cook the sausage, [and we have] coffee, orange juice and milk for drink options.”

Crutchfield said Pancake Day was a memorable part of childhood for the folks who grew up in Valley — a memory she cherishes.

“I hope that these kids remember Pancake Day being a day where they went and ate breakfast together with their community the same that I do,” she said. “I also hope that they remember seeing the faces of the people that were behind the scenes who were helping to make the event possible — because that is one of my favorite memories. I always enjoyed going to Pancake Day and seeing the people that were making it happen — a lot of them are not with us any more.”