Public dinners gain following at Colfax Methodist Church

Monthly dinner crew at the United Methodist Church Feb. 26 included, from the left, Kathy Lemon, Mikki Tague, Bev Yates, Connie McBride and Anna Hernandez.

For almost four years, a group of women at the United Methodist Church in Colfax has been cooking dinners once a month and serving them to the general public. They do not charge for the dinners, but guests have the option of making a donation.

“It’s just fun,” said Mikki Tague, one of the cooks.

Last Thursday night between nine and 10 servers dished up what they called “haystacks,” or a version of taco salad. As hungry visitors formed a line, the women filled plates with corn chips, meat, refried beans, salsa, fresh vegetables and sour cream. Fresh cornbread and honey, along with beverages, also were served. Ice cream completed the dinner.

Husbands help with the cleanup.

“We felt there was a need in the community,” Connie McBride said as the group waited for dinner guests to arrive. “We wanted to reach out and include everybody.”

Group members said some helpers come from the Congregational church in Colfax, and they would readily accept more help from other churches.

A committee sometimes decides what’s going to be served. Sometimes they have donated food to put on the menu, and other times they decide to serve food that has been on sale.

They have served fried chicken, spaghetti and roast pork. They have also served a full Thanksgiving turkey dinner.

When they served their first meal, only nine people showed up. After that, they debated whether or not to serve another.

They persevered and the number of guests grew. Now they serve between 65 to 100 guests. Their largest crowd to date was 108.

The dinners began as a free offering to guests, but many people insisted on donating something toward the meal.

“People come for socialization,” Tague said. “It’s always fun. There’s so much joy and happiness.”

Methodist church member Donna Brost began the idea of the dinners because she saw a need.

Guests from all economic levels and all ages come. They even have two new high chairs to accommodate babies.

McBride said the donations now come close to covering costs.

McBride also said the church women make about 100 quilts a year to donate to people in need. She said all labor and materials are donated.

“We’re serving Jesus Christ,” McBride explained.