A Table Set for Community: Waffle Breakfast Anchors the Final Day of Coon Rapids Snowflake Days

COON RAPIDS, MN
On Sunday morning, as winter light filters through the glass walls of the Coon Rapids Civic Center, the city’s longest running winter tradition reaches its communal heart. From 8 a.m. to noon on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, residents are invited inside for a free community waffle breakfast, a longstanding ritual that marks the final day of the 62nd Annual Snowflake Days, a festival that has shaped Coon Rapids winters since 1964.

The breakfast is hosted by the North Star Lions Club, whose members will serve waffles to neighbors, families, and first time attendees alike. While the meal itself is free, free will donations are accepted at the door. According to city event listings, proceeds traditionally support local civic initiatives, including community celebrations such as Coon Rapids’ Fourth of July programming.

Alongside the breakfast, the Coon Rapids Super Senior Club will operate a bake sale, offering homemade goods for purchase. The pairing reflects the spirit that has sustained Snowflake Days for more than six decades: intergenerational participation, volunteerism, and small scale acts of generosity that bind a city together during the coldest weeks of the year.

More Than Breakfast: A Civic Gathering Point

The waffle breakfast functions as more than a meal. It serves as the informal civic gathering where Snowflake Days transitions from celebration to reflection. Immediately following the breakfast, at noon, the city will host its Snowflake Days Awards Ceremony, recognizing residents who took part in this year’s signature contests.

Among them is the Snowflake Days Medallion Hunt, which concluded earlier in the week when the hidden medallion was discovered at Thorpe Park, along the Marshland Trail. The finder is eligible for a $500 prize, contingent on possession of the official 2026 Snowflake Days button, which this year features the festival mascot, Rocky the Raccoon.

Winners of the Snow Sculpture Contest will also be announced. The contest was extended through Feb. 4 following fresh snowfall, giving residents additional time to create entries across the city. Cash prizes ranging from $100 to $200 will be awarded, and the sculptures have been available for public viewing through a self guided digital tour map provided by the city.

Closing a 62 Year Tradition

Snowflake Days has endured not by spectacle alone, but by repetition and care. Year after year, it returns residents to familiar places and shared rituals, from outdoor games to warm meals served by volunteers who know many of the guests by name.

After the breakfast and awards ceremony, the celebration concludes later Sunday evening with Family Fun Day at the Coon Rapids Ice Center, running from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The finale features outdoor games such as ice bowling, family activities, and a free indoor public skate, bringing Snowflake Days to a close with movement, laughter, and one last reason to gather before winter settles back in.

In a season often defined by isolation, the waffle breakfast stands as Snowflake Days’ quiet thesis statement: community is built not only in council chambers or grand ceremonies, but around shared tables, where neighbors sit, eat, and recognize one another as part of the same city

MinneapoliMedia