Pancakes and Coloring Books

John and Sandy Kantzas flipped plain and chocolate chip pancakes on the griddle inside the kitchen of United Methodist Church Saturday morning, and strips of bacon and sausage links sizzled nearby. It was the Rotary Club of Monroe's Pancake Breakfast. The charitable event raised funds for Project Warmth, the town's home heating and energy assistance program.

"This is all the Rustic Grille's recipes," said John Kantzas, owner of the Main Street restaurant.

The food and a donation of Boston's Best Coffee was dropped off at the Kantzas' house before the breakfast.

The dining area of the church, located at 515 Cutlers Farm Road, was packed as families sat around tables with their stacks of pancakes.

In another room, children spent the morning coloring. Sheryl Rajpolt, a Sunday school teacher at the church, said middle school age children in her class printed free pictures to color and puzzles from the Internet and stapled them together to make books for the preschool children.

In many cases, the older kids sat down with the younger ones as they colored and Rajpolt said she loved watching them serve as mentors.

In keeping with the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, children made a large mural entitled, "What Are You Thankful For?"