The Crookston Masonic Lodge 141 will host a free-will offering Pancake Breakfast Fundraiser on Sunday, April 19, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., for the Honor Flight of Fargo and Grand Forks. The event will be at the Masonic Lodge in uptown Crookston at 112 West Robert Street and will serve pancakes, French toast, waffles, sausage, and fruit (gluten-free options are also available). All the proceeds go to the Honor Flight of No.
The last three years have been a resounding success, with over $110,000 raised. This year, they will try to break last year’s record total. “We’re going for the record again this year. I don’t know, it was very easy to do,” said Lester Wilkens of the Crookston Masonic Lodge. “As my dad said, there are a lot of men resting under little white markers to give us the chance and the opportunity to even be able to talk about it. So we owe it to them to give them a chance, and something they can be proud to do, and that’s the Honor Flight.”
Polk County Veterans Affairs Officer Kurt Ellefson said Veterans can apply to be on the Honor Flight online and he is happy to help out. “If you want to sign up someone will help you online and do it. It’s not that hard. Come see us at the office, too, of course,” said Ellefson. “But every veteran I’ve ever heard from who came back and talked to me about the Honor Flight, they said it was one of the best things they’ve ever done. It was just actually life-changing, too, so… So it’s a great cause.”
Veteran Loren “Punky” Johnson has been on the flight and said it is an amazing experience. “I know a lot of guys and gals you talk to say I’ve already been to Washington, D.C. It’s totally different when you’re on a plane with 100 other vets, and you can talk to them, and it’s different,” said Johnson. “And when you go there, the visiting and the talking, they take care of everything. You actually don’t have to bring any money if you don’t want to. But they’ll feed you and put you on buses, take you to the sites.”
Johnson said they take care of the Veterans on the trip. “They have everything there for you. They have wheelchairs, water, and medical people,” said Johnson. “They have a long line of people waiting to get on. We’ve gone through quite a few from Korea, World War II, Vietnam, and they’re starting to open it up to the Gulf War.”
Sponsors of the event are Christian Cars Online, Phil Thompson and Associates, Bagley Coop, Crookston VFW Post 1902 and Auxiliary, DAV Local 14, Crookston American Legion Post 20, Winger American Legion Post 200, and Plummer American Legion Post 623.
Again, the Pancake Breakfast Fundraiser on Sunday, April 19, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., for the Honor Flight of Fargo and Grand Forks. The event will be at the Masonic Lodge in uptown Crookston at 112 West Robert Street and will serve pancakes, French toast, waffles, sausage, and fruit (gluten-free options are also available). All the proceeds go to the Honor Flight of North Dakota/Minnesota.
