Trinity Church volunteers fortified a crowd of over 350 diners for our November SOME mission in Washington, D.C., our last luncheon of 2016.
Held in memory of Sarah Sisk, a long time volunteer who faithfully washed our vegetables for 29 years, the Outreach effort brought several challenges but nothing was insurmountable for our seasoned crew.
One of the main ovens was not in working order, a typical occurrence. The special menu included country-fried chicken, a product that required extra baking time and more inspection from our resident “food police.” SOME staff were diligent in making sure the product was cooked thoroughly. One of the mashed potato casseroles suffered a little spillage on the journey in, largely due to the absence of expert van packer, Tommy Breeden, still recovering from knee surgery.
Those potatoes however were in good hands once we reached the SOME kitchen as Becky Hoecker skillfully prepped them for the oven, adding melted butter and French fried onions for the finishing touch. One guest expressed great surprise and pleasure over being served real mashed potatoes, a rarity in the dining room.
The task of cooking the chicken fell largely on Ken Knapp and Jim Gemmer who managed to get out the finished product largely on schedule. Supervising the green beans, gravy and coleslaw were Bob Appenzeller and Len Shapiro, both veterans of food prep for the masses.
Organizing the desserts and bread trays were Carol Miller, Maggie New and Jennifer Youngman as well as Ann MacLeod, who presided over the entire team. Robin Keys greeted the guests and enjoyed conversations about our church and the community of Upperville, children and many other more sensitive topics.
No one seemed to miss preparing the rice casserole and instead stirred mashed potatoes and added onion powder, sour cream and cream cheese, as well as half and half. Thanks to Gina Hammond for a wonderful recipe that was our guide.
Also deserving much thanks were our other fine contributors including: Gar Royer, who dropped off his hot baked bread just as we were loading the van; Bunny Shick who made cookies, and the students at Foxcroft School who earlier made an abundance of brownies and froze them just for this occasion, among many others.
If approved by the Outreach Committee, our mission will continue for year 30 on Friday, January 20, 2017, inauguration day. We expect to return to our standard fish repast and will prepare the meal the day before, Thursday, January 19 in Cox Hall.
All told we were able to feed a hearty meal to over 2400 hungry individuals in 2016 at an average cost of under $2.50 per person. May God bless every one of you for your generous support.