Breakfast — it’s commonly known as the most important meal of the day. But a small group of volunteers in Visalia have given it some added importance. 

On the second Sunday of each month, members of Visalia Elks Lodge 1298 prepare a breakfast spread that’s enjoyed by about 300 people.

“We net about $2,200, and it all goes to veterans,” said Chuck Lee, the lodge’s exalted ruler.

In addition to donating items such as big screen TVs, DVD players, audio books and magazines, the volunteers have also given money to the Veterans Affairs Central California Health Care System in Fresno.

“Most recently they contributed $4,000 to the Community Living Center,” said David Phillips, public affairs officer for the VA Central California Health Care System.

The center is a 60-bed unit that houses veterans in the last days of their lives. 

“We’re upgrading the rooms to reflect more of a homelike environment,” Phillips said, “and the money is being used to buy things like room lamps, dressers, sleeper chairs and pictures on the wall.”

The idea for the breakfast came about when a lodge member, the late Bill Rankin, visited another lodge that was using proceeds from its monthly breakfast to benefit veterans. When he returned, Rankin suggested that the Visalia lodge do likewise.

And it’s a breakfast fit for a king.

Patrons can choose from a menu that includes omelets, ham, bacon, sausage, peppers, two kinds of onions, mushrooms, biscuits and gravy, fried potatoes, orange juice, coffee and homemade salsa.

Meal prices are $6 for veterans and children 12 and under, and $8 for the general public. 

“When we began doing this about three years ago, we had about 30 to 40 people show up,” Lee said. “Now we have close to 300 people, and they start lining up at 8.”

The day before the breakfast, about 15 volunteers begin chopping, dicing and doing other prep work. The day of the breakfast, about 25 volunteers fill various roles that range from cooking to cleaning tables. 

“It’s quite an operation,” Lee said. “Everyone has a job, everyone knows their part, and they just do it.”

Phillips says the Visalia lodge has been extremely supportive over the years, providing essential items to veterans.

“They’re fabulous, they don’t forget the vets, and we couldn’t thank them enough,” he said. 

(Oct. 30, 2009)