ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
Marvin Billings has been a fixture at the annual Pancake Day festivities for many years, and this year, he will have a particularly special role as the Grand Marshal.
As Billings tells it, he was very surprised to receive the honor.
“I went in to check on some stuff, and the lady who was up front said 'Hi Mr. Grand Marshal,' to which I responded 'What are you talking about?'” Billings said with a chuckle. “I'd actually missed a couple board meetings, so I wasn't there when they made that decision. I'm excited because the breakfast is free, and there are a lot of extras we're going to have for this year.”
Billings began his time with Pancake Day more than 40 years ago.
“I started with Pancake Day in 1984, and it was a family affair because my father-in-law, Aaron Bird, was involved with the Kiwanis Group, which does the breakfast,” Billings said. “So I got involved in Kiwanis and started doing a breakfast. For the first few years, I was just kitchen help, running around and doing whatever was needed, and the breakfast was at the Armory at that time. Then they built the Seward County Activity Center, and we moved everything there, and that was first time we used the grills in the Seward County Activity Center, and there was a lot of work to do there as far as piping in the grills and getting them all working. We had the only accident we've ever had at Pancake Day – at that time, the gas line that went to their stove and back, and I ran the gas line out and across the floor now to the grills. The whole time, I was telling people 'Watch your step' and 'Don't trip over that,' but guess who tripped over it? So I moved the gas line up overhead for the next few years, and it was always I and my brother who set up the grills, but then my brother passed away. We needed something more simple, and that's when we came up with the idea of the traveling trailer, but we had a lot of logistics to work out with that. We had no problem knowing where to get grills. It was a trailer thing that we had to work with. However, I happened to be at the Kansas State Fair and came across a implement company that had this trailer one backed up over the axles, or you can disconnect the axles and pull down off of it, let it flat on the ground, and that's the innovation for putting the grills on the trailer.”
Ever since then, Billings said he has been happy to be part of the annual tradition.
“I was always raised to do is help out whenever and however I could, and again, it was a family thing – Byron Bird was there, so was Greg Bird, who was the Pancake Day Breakfast chairman for a while, and then I took it over from Greg. And now, somebody else is going to have to take it over since I'm retiring,” Billings said. “Every year is a little different, which makes it fun. The 75th Pancake Day was interesting and really big, and I remember doing a lot of pancakes. One of the things I always thought was strange was for years, I fixed the coffee for the Pancake Day Breakfast, but I don't drink coffee, and there were a lot of people who never knew how I mixed that coffee. When we designed and built the grill trailer, that was a big thing, and we've taken the grill trailer several places, including the Guymon Pioneer Days, different parks in town, and other places.”
Billings said this year will see multiple firsts for him.
“Actually, after I was told I was going to be the Grand Marshal, I was wondering 'Where am I going to find time to be at these Grand Marshal events?'” Billings said. “I've actually only been to one Grand Marshal's reception in my entire career, because if I can get in the Activity Center that Saturday before, then I've got Sunday to do a lot of work on the trailer, and then that Monday night's always my night to fire the trailer up and make sure everything's working the way it should because we've got tons of stuff we have to wash and be prepped for and everything. And then I've never been to the parade, because I'm always cleaning up after the breakfast, and they're going to want me to be there. There are definitely going to be a lot of firsts for me for this year. Being chosen was okay, but I'm the kind of guy who likes to work in the background, so just being out front is not my thing, but I think it'll all be a lot of fun. We're doing sponsorships different and things like that, so that's got me interested in seeing how that comes out. I know things are getting kind of hectic right now, of course, so I'm just excited to see everyone who comes out for this year.”
Overall, Billings said, he is excited to see the 2026 Pancake Day festivities.
“I'm excited the Pancake Day Board chose me as the Grand Marshal for this year, and I hope to see everyone out and about on Pancake Day at the breakfast and everywhere else,” Billings said.
