For a $5 fee starting Friday at 9:30 p.m., Lewis Hall will host their annual charity event, the Lewis House of Pancakes (LHOP), providing an all-you-can eat breakfast buffet with different foods on every floor. The residents serve not only pancakes, but bacon, eggs, juice and cinnamon rolls as well.
All proceeds from LHOP go to the Food Bank of Northern Indiana, an organization that serves the South Bend community. According to the Food Bank’s website, they donated seven million pounds of food to local agencies in 2016 alone. Lewis’ involvement with the Food Bank doesn’t stop with LHOP.
“It’s for a really good cause,” sophomore Amanda Bono, one of the LHOP chairs, said. “Last year, we had a group of girls volunteer there afterwards, to see what the Food Bank was like, and we’re going to try to do that again.”
Bono and her fellow organizer, sophomore Sarah Duehren, estimated that about 1,000 people attended last year’s LHOP, and Duehren said they’ve set a goal to beat that number tonight.
“It’s open to the public, but it’s mostly students that come,” Duehren said. “We’re hoping to exceed that number this year.”
The residents of Lewis Hall are very passionate about this event, Bono said, which they believe builds dorm spirit.
“The girls honestly love it,” she said. “The reason that I wanted to help run it this year was because I had such a great time last year.”
Freshman Rachel Duffy expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming event, which will be her first LHOP.
“I’m really excited that we’re going to get a lot of people to come out and beat last year’s record, and raise money for charity,” Duffy said.
Duehren remarked that the participation and interest around LHOP represents a bigger part of Lewis Hall.
“It goes to show how strong the community is, because everybody’s so excited to be a part of it,” Duehren said.
Lewis is located northwest of the Main Building, near Saint Joseph’s Lake. The residents of Lewis highly encourage everyone to come with their friends and donate to a worthy cause.
“If you’re on the fence about coming, I think that if you’re a person who appreciates breakfast food — and who appreciates charity, who appreciates community — then this is the place for you,” Duffy said.
Duehren added that LHOP doesn’t have to be a night-long commitment.
“I hope everyone can come out, and even if you’re there for five minutes, it’s worth coming out and seeing,” she said. “And it’s for a really good cause.”
