Pancake Breakfast in Wakarusa Raises Cash for Charities
Published: Friday, May 1, 2026
The Wakarusa Lions Club served an estimated 15,000 pancakes with real maple syrup last Saturday during the Wakarusa Maple Syrup Festival.
The breakfast was one of the highlights of the annual three-day festival, now in its 57th year.
Steve Brown, who has been a volunteer for 41 years, was expecting approximately 1,200 people to come through the line that morning. All the money raised goes to charities supported by the Lions Club.
"It's what we can give to the community," he said. "This is a special town. I've had so many good friends I've made here."
John Weldy, Lions Club treasurer, said the civic group supports two scholarships for NorthWood High School seniors, as well as eye exams and glasses for middle school students. The club also donates money to Isaiah 117 House and local Boy Scouts.
"Everything that we bring in, every dollar, will go back to the community," Weldy said.
Brown and Weldy were among 36 volunteers working at the all-you-can-eat breakfast.
Over the years, the pancake breakfast has been held at the middle school, the fire station and, for the past two years, Doc's Pavilion. This year, organizers needed 800 pounds of pancake mix and 100 pounds of fresh sausage to feed the hungry crowd. The maple syrup was produced locally by John Loucks of New Paris.
Another festival highlight was the queen contest on Friday evening. Caroline Kinney, a sixth grader at NorthWood Middle School, was crowned queen. She also won the "Spirit of Wakarusa" essay contest and was the winner of the People's Choice contest. She is the daughter of Jay and Marie Kinney.
First runnerup in the queen contest was Hadleigh Campbell, daughter of Logan and Hannah Campbell. She is also a sixth grader at NorthWood Middle School. The second runnerup was Alexia Gingerich, daughter of Loren and Rachael Gingerich. She is a seventh grader at NorthWood Middle School.
The 2026 Maple Syrup Sweetheart is Eleanor Fry, 5, daughter of Eric and Lauren Eby.
All the queen contestants and sweetheart candidates rode in Saturday's parade through Wakarusa.
Last Saturday afternoon, members of the Elkhart County Garden Tractor Pullers held their first pull of the season at the Wakarusa Historical Museum on East Wabash Avenue. Contestants brought their modified lawn tractors to compete in various categories. Each tractor was equipped with a fire extinguisher and a kill switch in case of fire.
Most of the competitors, like Tony Bower of Wabash, have been competing for about a year and a half. This was the first time Bower had come up to participate in the Elkhart County event.
"I do this for fun," he said. "I don't have a lot of money in it. I just go out and have fun."
He normally competes on a dirt surface, but this was the first time he had driven his 14-horsepower tractor on an asphalt surface.
Matt Thompson of LaGrange drove an IH garden tractor, finishing sixth in the 14-horsepower division with a pull of 155.90 feet.
One of the youngest competitors was 17-year-old Rachael Taylor of Elkhart. Also competing in the 14-horsepower division, Taylor pulled the sled 191.21 feet, good enough for fourth place.
Taylor brought a second tractor, with 16 horsepower, that she used last year to win the Elkhart County Garden Tractor Pulling championship. Last Saturday, she won second place with a pull of 217.36 feet.
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