Election day once again commemorated with pancake festival
BUTLER TWP — All day breakfast and elections have gone hand in hand in Butler for nearly seven decades at Lifestep’s Pancake Festival, and this year the nonprofit brought in entertainment for the expected crowd of 1,000 patrons.
Lifesteps, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Butler PM, served up all-you-can-eat pancakes, sausages and refreshments to area residents for the 66th edition of the Election Day event Tuesday, Nov. 4, at the Tanglewood Center in Lyndora.
“We are here to serve,” said Karen Sue Owens, president and CEO of Lifesteps. “It is really our vision to improve the quality of life for the members of our community. There is such fellowship and comradery and the epitome of the Rotary motto is service above self.
“When you bring Lifestep’s together with the Rotary, it is truly service above self.”
Members of the Butler County Symphony Association took turns providing musical entertainment throughout the day, including the musical stylings of Myriam Clermont on the violin, Cecilia Caughman on the cello and Bryan Helsel on the piano.
“We have been doing this for 66 years and we used to have entertainment and we thought you know what, let’s see if we can get some folks out this year,” Owens said.
Proceeds from the festival benefit the social service agency’s mission to help every individual live life to the fullest. Roughly 50 Rotary Club volunteers and adults with disabilities associated with Lifestep’s Transition Program joined forces from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to accommodate hungry guests.
“I think the event addresses the need for food at a reasonable price,” said Barb Gade, president of Butler Rotary Club PM. “But it also helps to get people out to vote. We encourage people to go vote. People generally go vote and home here or vice versa. This one is generally a lighter election.”
During the late morning of the event, George Musko of Butler stopped by to enjoy some flapjacks at the Festival and said he is the brother of Lifestep’s former CEO, Dan Musko who died last year.
Musko said he has been coming to the festival ever since it started, and his parents used to volunteer for the event.
“I wore Dan’s cloths today to honor him,” Musko said. “He helped take Lifesteps from nothing to what it is today. At one time it was only three employees.”
Musko said he has also seen the work of Lifesteps firsthand with his daughter, Faith Musko, who was non-verbal during her early childhood.
“(Faith) came through this program and now she has a doctorate degree and a MBA,” Musko said. “She works for PPG, training leaders all over the world now.”
Musko said the event has been well accepted in the community since day one, and it has become a celebration of not only Lifesteps, but the country’s democracy.
“It’s just a wonderful, homey event,” Musko said. “I have lived out in Arizona for the winters and they don’t have things like this. Butler is just a special place and Lifesteps is just godsend.”
