By Jennifer Theurer

The River Valley District of Kansas State University Research and Extension offers many services and programs for the community, but few know they also have cake pans available for community members to borrow.

Kaitlin Moore, nutrition, food safety and health agent in the Concordia Extension office, said there are many different shapes, sizes, and character pans at each of the district’s offices.

“It’s not just for 4-H families or 4-H youth,” Moore said. “Anyone in the community is welcome to come check them out.”

For a cash deposit, community members can check out the pan of their choice. They’ll get their deposit back when they return the pan. In the Clay County Extension office, pans can be borrowed with a $2 deposit. Upon returning the pan, the borrower will get $1 back while the other $1 goes to the local 4-H.

The proceeds used to go to the local Homemaker Extension Units, but the two remaining Clay County groups are facing dwindling numbers and decided the 4-H would put the money to better use.

West Riverside HEU member Kris Pfizenmaier said 4-H members borrow the pans most often, and Shawna Lang, Clay County Extension office professional, mentioned one local woman that lets her grandkids pick out a pan each year so they can have a baking contest over the holidays.

Housing such an extensive collection takes up a lot of space, Moore said, and some of the River Valley District offices would like to see another business to take it over.

“We need to find an organization in each community that is willing to take this cake pan collection,” she said, adding that Extension’s hope is that someone would continue lending the pans out to the public.

Until that happens, the offices in Clay, Cloud, Republic, and Washington counties welcome anyone to borrow their cake pans for making holiday treats.