Children’s Miracle Network / IHOP

If you are into pancakes and want to help out a worthy cause, you should head to your local IHOP today and take advantage of their free pancakes fundraiser, National Pancake Day Celebration, where the proceeds go toward supporting the Children’s Miracle Network. 

Not that I really need the extra calories or anything but I might go anyway to help out a worthy cause!  It’s a great excuse to go eat some pancakes and feel a little less guilty about it!

IHOP, one of America’s favorite restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner, has announced plans to serve millions of free pancakes in celebration of National Pancake Day on February 24, 2009.  The celebration is designed to bring together friends and family, as well as to raise $1 million for Children’s Miracle Network, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping children’s hospitals, and other worthy causes.

2009 will mark IHOP’s fourth year of celebrating the national event, and nearly 1,400 IHOP restaurants throughout the United States will once again invite guests to enjoy a free short stack of IHOP’s signature buttermilk pancakes from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.  In return, IHOP guests are asked to donate what they would have paid for the free pancakes, or more, to their local children’s hospital or another worthy cause. Additionally, Miracle Balloons will be sold for $1 each, personalized and displayed at participating IHOP restaurants from February 1 through February 24, 2009, offering guests another way to show their support of Children’s Miracle Network and contribute to the National Pancake Day fundraising effort.

Known also as Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras, National Pancake Day dates back several centuries to when the English prepped for fasting during Lent.  Strict rules prohibited the eating of all dairy products during Lent, so pancakes were made to use up the supply of eggs, milk, butter and other dairy products… hence the name Pancake Tuesday, or Shrove Tuesday. 

Since the inception of National Pancake Day in 2006, IHOP has raised nearly $2 million to support charities in communities in which it operates. In 2008, IHOP gave away more than 1.5 million pancakes and raised over $875,000 in support of Children’s Miracle Network and other local charities, far exceeding its goal to raise $750,000.

For more information about IHOP’s National Pancake Day, or to learn more about Children’s Miracle Network and make an online donation, visit www.ihoppancakeday.com.

 

Children’s Miracle Network – IHOP