Lions Club Volunteers Pour Pancakes for Charity

The smell of pancakes filtered through our open front door and sent my husband and children, including two sleepover guests, onto the Green Sunday morning. 

When I found them all out there, I learned that the Tolland Lions sign I was used to seeing upon entering the Green stood for something more than the insignia. I learned that the Lions are the largest international volunteer organization in the world. 

Jim Norris, who has another few weeks to go as president of the Tolland chapter, welcomed me as I entered the yellow and white striped tent. Norris made sure I was outfitted with two huge pancakes and two sausage links. We chatted as we watched cars pull up and more families approach the tent for breakfast. 

The more we talked, the more I began to understand the purpose of the Lions’ Club.

About 25 men belong to the Tolland chapter, according to Norris. Their main focus is giving back to the community, although the Lions do have a special interest in vision. They also raise money for eye exams for children whose families cannot afford them. The money goes to the town and the town pays Dr. David Palozej to perform the exams. The Lions do not learn the identity of their beneficiaries. Other vision-related charities to which the Lions donate proceeds include Fidelco, a nonprofit organization that trains guide dogs for the blind. 

Community support includes scholarships for Tolland High School graduates, baseball field maintenance at Crandall Park and gift cards for food or Christmas gifts for town officials to distribute to those in need, among other activities. The Lions also donated two defibrillators to the Tolland Fire Department.

Leonard Bach, a long-time Lions’ member, said that the pancake breakfast is not a big fundraiser for the group; more income is derived from tent rentals than the breakfast, which provides publicity for the group and awareness about its causes and availability of the tent rentals. The group owns a variety of tents, available for rent, ranging in size up to 105 feet.

On Sunday, one of those tents shielded the dining public from the sun as they enjoyed the pancake breakfast on the Green. An average of 200 people show up each year for the event, which the group has hosted for about 35 years.

Tolland resident Bob Klukas, who likes to bring extra pancakes home to eat the next day, was one of many who sat down at a table under the tent Sunday. Klukas came with his family, including wife Lisa and daughter Natalie, continuing their own tradition of attendance at the breakfast.