LIHUE — East Kauai Lion Harvey Kinoshita said Sunday’s set-up for making miso soup was a lot better than it used to be. “We’re on track to make about the same amount as last year,” Kinoshita said during the club’s
LIHUE — East Kauai Lion Harvey Kinoshita said Sunday’s set-up for making miso soup was a lot better than it used to be.
“We’re on track to make about the same amount as last year,” Kinoshita said during the club’s annual fundraising breakfast, while moving pots of water for more soup. “And this is way better than making it outside in the tent — especially when it’s raining.”
The East Kauai Lions Club served up more than 1,400 pancake meals, including scrambled eggs, Portuguese sausage, fresh fruit — including fresh pineapple flown in from Maui — and Kinoshita’s miso soup, at the Elsie Wilcox Elementary School cafeteria.
“The big rush came between 8 and 8:30 this morning when we served more than 300 meals,” said Lion Stephen Fujii, who was keeping track of the line as well as selling tickets at the door with Lion Roy Tanaka. “Overall, we ended up with 508 dine-ins and 937 take-outs.”
Naty Bali was among the throngs.
“I come eat every year,” Bali said. “This year, my mother wasn’t feeling so good, so I have one for her that I’ll bring home.”
Others, like Sandi Kato-Klutke, left with bags filled with meals.
“This is for my children who are still at home, sleeping,” Kato- Klutke said. “I like the miso soup. I think I’d rather have that than the pancakes.”
East Kauai Lion Ron Garlie cranked out batch after batch, being joined by East Kauai Lion Kerry Mori at the griddle.
“Sam Morningstar moved to Arizona,” Garlie said. “Now, we have Kerry Mori doing the pancakes, after all that time he was making the batter. Now, he’s flipping pancakes.”
Lion Gary Pacheco from the North Shore Lions Club was giving Ashleigh Klein a hard time about the condiments for the miso soup.
“I like the big onions,” Pacheco, the pancake chef at the North Shore Lions Pancake and Hula event, told Klein, triggering a Leo Club member to fish out a large piece of green onion.
“Ashleigh is our newest club member,” said Lion Calvin Moniz, the Lions’ district governor. “She’s in charge of the Project VisionVan which will be here for six months. She’s also the newest member of the East Kauai Lions Club — so new, she doesn’t even have a shirt yet.”
Lion Roy Nishida, the co-chair of the upcoming Lions convention with Kinoshita, said the club has streamlined a lot of the breakfast operation, and members rely on the help of the Leo Clubs to make sure everything flows smoothly.
The fundraiser supports the club’s sight and hearing projects and other community service for the year.
