News / Press Releases

Hall of Fame now open three days a week

Virginia Leete looks at the many items on display at the Hall of Fame in 2005, shortly after the first floor exhibits were in place. The second floor is now complete, offering space to view scrapbooks and videos, as well as a meeting room. Leete and her late husband, R. J., were instrumental in founding Pancake Day in 1950.

The International Pancake Day Hall of Fame, located at 4th and Lincoln in Liberal is now open for limited hours on weekends and Mondays. On display is memorabilia from past Pancake Day events, including early prizes, Pancake Day buttons, a 1951 bottle of maple syrup, program books and prayer books from Olney, England, and many other items.

Visitors may also browse through scrapbooks containing hundreds of photos and news clippings, dating all the way back to 1950, the first Pancake Day.

“People really like to look at the scrapbooks,” said Ken Thompson, Pancake Board member, who conducts tours of the Hall of Fame. Thompson noted that visitors enjoy finding themselves or someone they know in photos in the scrapbooks or just looking at interesting items from the past.

The Hall of Fame also houses an audio-visual area, where visitors may view videos such as the Food Network’s 2004 30-minute program on Pancake Day and other Pancake Day documentaries.

A wide array of Pancake Day merchandise, including t-shirts, commemorative prints, vintage buttons, postcards and coffee mugs, is available for purchase at the Hall of Fame, too.

The Hall of Fame Foundation Board is also seeking volunteers to help man the facility. Anyone willing to volunteer one or more days a month should call Thompson for more information.

The Hall of Fame is open from 3-6 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays, and 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Mondays. There is no admission charge, but donations to help fund daily operations and future expansion are appreciated.

For more information, call Ken Thompson at 655-1181 or Jo Ann Combs at 624-6423.