Pancakes with PGC is a well-liked event by many students across Northwestern’s campus. On a Sunday night, students are able to go to the cafeteria and get pancakes made by President Gregory Christy himself. This year, the event will take place on Feb. 16 from 8:45p.m. to 10:45p.m.
At Pancakes with PGC, plenty of entertainment is provided for the students’ enjoyment. In past events, screens have been set up with games such as “Just Dance” and “Guitar Hero”, but there are also plenty of board games and card games to choose from as well. To top it all off, a pancake eating contest is held between President Christy and whoever dares compete against him.
While the event is lots of fun, many students have discussed how long the line for pancakes can be, especially when coming right after Praise and Worship. However, students do not let this deter them from attending.
NW students are not the only ones to attend this event. In recent years, Pancakes with PGC has typically fallen on a RED101 weekend. The prospective students attending the RED101 event are able to come with their hosts and enjoy the community alongside other Raiders.
Ella Erickson, now a freshman, attended Pancakes with PGC on her RED101 weekend last February. “I went with my host after P&W and one of my first thoughts was, ‘Does this happen often?’ I remember waiting in the huge line, but it was very exciting and fun because I got to see the community.” Erickson said “I remember seeing PGC in his apron and chef’s hat making the pancakes for us. It was a fun way to interact with more people and get a taste of what NW events are like.”
Erickson’s fellow freshman, Juleah Brinks also attended Pancakes with PGC on her RED101 weekend. While she did not stay at the event very long, the most memorable thing for her was the pancakes themselves. Not expecting the pancakes to be both dairy and gluten free, she was worried she would not be able to eat any. “At first, I thought I was not going to be able to have any pancakes, but they did have options for me. It was very special,” she said “It was also cool because it made me think NW did a lot more on campus together. I thought, ‘Oh yea, they have fun here.’”
Having this event on a RED101 weekend gives prospective students an opportunity to experience life as a NW student. They are able to see what it is like to be a part of the community. Student Activities Council very purposefully chooses to pair specific events with RED101 weekends that do just that.
Talking with upperclassmen MacKenzie Russel and Mary Walnofer, they both agreed that while it does add more bodies to the chaos, it is important for the prospective students to be able to experience that part of NW community. It is something that their hosts can take them to so that they can meet more people. Walnofer also adds that it then makes it special if those prospective students come to NW the next year because they always talk about how they remember their Pancakes with PGC experience.
While it may seem like a coincidence that a RED101 weekend seems to fall around the same time as Pancakes with PGC, it is not. In reality, Pancakes with PGC was created specifically for RED101 students by Admissions and Marketing Event Strategist Lucas Heiberger, in February 2021. Krista Bonestroo adds that RED101 weekends are scheduled first, and then the event. She says that RED101 weekends can be scheduled up to a year in advance. After that, the SAC decides to continue to put Pancakes with PGC on the same weekend.
