Club to host pancake breakfast fundraiser

A nonprofit organization that is dedicated to serving the community is hosting a fundraiser that will benefit its service programs.

The Painesville Exchange Club’s annual pancake breakfast will be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on March 4 at the Fairport Harbor Senior Center, 1380 East Street.

The menu includes allyou-can-eat pancakes, sausage, milk, coffee and juice.

The tickets are $5 and can be purchased in advance at a meeting or at the door.

The club meets every Monday at noon at Hellriegel’s Inn, 1840 Mentor Ave. in Painesville Township

One of the members Michael Patriarca, who is also the Painesville Township Fiscal Officer, said the pancake breakfast is one of their major fundraisers.

He said he remembers going to Pancake Day as a kid.

The Painesville Exchange Club is part of the National Exchange Club comprised of more than 650 local clubs throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico. It provides individuals with opportunities to use their time and talents to benefit their local communities and the country as a whole. Its mission is to inspire communities to become better places to live.

The Painesville Exchange Club has been active in the community for nearly eight decades.

One of their programs called Time Out Teddy aligns with the National Project- Child Abuse Prevention. The club also gives out scholarships to local high school seniors. “We typically give out about $10,000 a year in scholarships,” said Patriarca. “We’ve been doing that for well over 35 years.”

The Painesville Exchange Club hopes to grow and is seeking new members.

Those interested in joining can come to any meeting on Monday, Patriarca said.

“Just come have lunch with us,” he said. “The first lunch is free, so you can come see what it is all about.”