Oceanside Kiwanis hosts 'super' pancake breakfast

Bacon crackled and the smell of pancakes filled the cafeteria at St. Anthony’s Church as Oceanside Kiwanis hosted its annual Super Bowl Sunday pancake breakfast on Feb. 2, which was attended by dozens of residents.

The club, which comprises adult members and Oceanside High School Key Club participants, has fed hungry attendees at the event with a buffet-style breakfast for more than 20 years. The annual dining session serves as a fundraiser for the many programs Oceanside Kiwanis sponsors and co-sponsors throughout the year through admission fees and raffles. A lot of the money raised from the breakfast will go toward sending underprivileged children in the area to Camp Kiwanis, in upstate New York.

Oceanside resident Leo Bonacasa donates his time to cook the pancakes, while dozens of others also volunteered. The committee of the pancake breakfast includes Michael Mulhern, Marc Metzger, Nancy Baxter, John Guidley, Brenda Leigh Johnson, Mike Graham, Michael D’Ambrosio, Rich Hall, Juan Vides, Herb Faust and Joe Ponte.

Notable attendees included State Sen. Todd Kaminsky, County Legislator Debra Mulé and members of the Oceanside Fire Department.

Many businesses and residents donate to the cause each year. This year’s event helped many Oceansiders fuel up before watching the Kansas City Chiefs defeat the San Francisco 49ers, 31-20, in Super Bowl LIV at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.