Michael Ferrara takes a bite of fresh corn as his wife, Kathy, looks on at the Eden Prairie Lions Club Corn Feed on Saturday, Aug. 1. The couple, married for 46 years, has lived in Eden Prairie for 30 years. Photo by Hayden Koughan
The Eden Prairie Lions Club’s annual Corn Feed was a huge success, said event chair Gregg Fletcher, with at least 600 hungry people coming through the line in just the first two hours.
By day’s end on Saturday, Aug. 1, roughly 1,000 people had made their way to Round Lake Park, where the last of 4,000 ears of sweet corn were steamed, dunked in butter and served before 5 p.m.
By mid-afternoon, the parking lot was full, picnic tables were crowded, and steam rose from cookers manned by Lions members in matching shirts. Alongside the corn, volunteers served hot dogs, sloppy Joes and chips.
The event drew families, older residents and Eden Prairie students, many treating it as a reunion over paper plates and melting butter.
Corn for the feed came from Untiedt’s Vegetable Farm in Waverly. Proceeds benefit local causes, including PROP Food Shelf, Can Do Canines and scholarships for Eden Prairie High School seniors.
The fundraiser is one of the Lions Club’s biggest of the year, along with Schooner Days, the Pancake Breakfast and the club’s golf tournament.
Terry Eggan, right, readies steaming corn as Gregg Fletcher, the event’s longtime chair, looks on during the Eden Prairie Lions Club’s Corn Feed on Aug. 1. Photo by Hayden Koughan
