Last summer’s storms lead to expanded mission for church
Emanuel Church is serving a free dinner for everyone on the third Wednesday of the month.
by Sara Swanson
You may have seen a sign out in front of Emanuel Church that reads “Have dinner on us” or a post on Facebook for a free meal at Emanuel and wondered what that was about. It is exactly what it sounds like — a once-a-month free dinner that everyone is invited to, whether or not they attend Emanuel Church, whether or not they live in the community, and whatever their financial situation is. Dinners can be eaten at the church or picked up to-go style and eaten at home.
The meals are a brainchild of Kathy Fusilier and came about as a result of a need she noticed in the community last summer after one of the rounds of bad storms. Her husband, Mike, serves on the Manchester Township Board and heard from multiple people affected by the resulting power outage that lasted up to a week in some spots. She learned that some community members had used their food money to buy gas for their generators and she became aware of food insecurity in our community.
Fusilier, who feels strongly that church should be a service organization, approached the council of her church, Emanuel United Church of Christ, with the idea of providing monthly free meals, and they approved it.
Partnering with fellow church member, caterer, and former restaurateur Dawna Stockwell, they held their first free meal last fall. As word spread, more and more community members have attended. They have run out of food before 6pm multiple times and served more than 300 people at the last meal. Fusilier stated that that means they need more food for next time.
The free meal project has received more than $2,000 in donations, including a $1,000 grant from the 5 Healthy Towns Foundation. Fusilier explained that they didn’t want anyone to pay for the meal and were initially opposed to having a donation box out so that no one felt any pressure to pay. But after many requests to donate, they have put an unobtrusive donation box off to the side so if diners really want to contribute, they can. They’ve received $5s, $10s, and even $20s from diners.
Fusilier stated that now they need to decide what to do with the extra donated money. While they may increase the meals to twice a month, they are also looking at working with the school system to feed kids once a week during the summer. She stated that this summer they will be using Fusilier’s farm-grown fresh fruit and vegetables in the meals.
Fusilier stated, “Church is supposed to be more than 10am to 11am on Sunday. We can take care of their spiritual needs on Sunday but also help them with their other needs.” She added that if the meals do bring people into the church to help with their other needs, when they do look to meet their spiritual needs, then maybe they will turn to Emanuel. She added, “The ultimate goal is meeting their spiritual needs.”
Free dinners at Emanuel are on the third Wednesday of the month. This month’s meal will be on Wednesday, April 17, from 4:30pm to 7pm (or when they run out of food). Emanuel Church is located at 324 W Main St, rear entrance. Parking is in the lot behind the church. Fusilier doesn’t know the menu exactly but knows it is going to be beef.
Come enjoy a free dinner this Wednesday and help spread the word!
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