By PHYLLIS ZORN and MADELINE REIDA

Staff writers

A pancake feed will kick off Peabody Community Foundation’s 2021 grant awards from 7 to 11 a.m. Saturday at Peabody Senior Center.

Coffee, orange juice, and locally made sausage will also be served. Cost is donation to the foundation.

At 9 a.m., children ages 3 to 13 will be invited to participate in the fourth annual Flippin’ Pancake Race. They will be grouped by age and run a route through the city park, flipping a pancake on a skillet a required number of times.

“It’s pretty fun,” foundation director Becky Nickel said. “I ran into a child yesterday outside Pop’s Diner who was like, ‘I think I placed seventh!’ Good for you, kiddo.”

Participants must bring their own skillets. No entry fee will be charged, but racers will need a release of liability signed by a parent or guardian. Prizes will be awarded to the winners.

At 9:30 a.m., grant awards to community charities will be announced. More than $13,000 has been granted to 15 charitable projects and organizations, with the largest awarded to Peabody Food Bank to assist with increased demand because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Other grants went to Hart Park for playground equipment, Print Museum for repairs, and Marion County Core Communities for services to Peabody families.

“Our total endowment is over a million dollars now, which is a big deal for Peabody,” Nickel said. “Our endowed funds are really the bread and butter of the foundation.”

Money for grants comes from two foundation funds, the Peabody Endowment Fund and the Kansas Health Foundation Fund. The expendable Peabody Community Response Fund also was used to meet pandemic-related needs. The foundation anticipates granting an additional $1,200 to Peabody-Burns teachers late in November.

After serving breakfast, the foundation board and staff will have a table at Peabody Fall Festival and offer cupcakes in honor of Angel “Ace” Torres’s 98th birthday.

A life-long Peabody resident, Torres died in July. The Angel “Ace” Torres Legacy Fund was established through memorial gifts later that month. The foundation anticipates making grants in his name to honor the memory of his service to the community.

“Angel was always there to lend a helping hand,” said Mark Levering, foundation board member. “I can remember watching him climb a ladder to trim my neighbor’s cedar trees when he was already in his mid-80s.”

Torres often mowed lawns and helped many people in the community, according to Levering.

A scavenger hunt, pumpkin golfing, 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. shows by magician and ventriloquist David May, wiffle ball and horseshoe tournaments, four singers, and 29 vendors will also be at Peabody Fall Fest.