MONROE - The concept of community can vary widely from person to person, but the parishioners of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Monroe believe they have a shared vision that will enhance their local community.
Their idea of people from all walks of life preparing, serving and partaking in a community meal has taken on a life of its own, with many more local participants joining the effort, to become the Loaves and Fishes Community Meal.
"The meal is to enhance community in our area," said Father Brian Backstrand, the priest at St. Andrew's, "and to provide an opportunity where people can meet, in an era when community is splintered by a lot of different forces that focus on the differences rather than similarities."
The church's ideas for a community meal came together after members' experience with several previous community-help projects, from which they developed a deeper vision of mission and outreach, Backstrand said.
One such project was delivering gift baskets to veterans on Memorial Day last year. Sharing their experiences with each other one Sunday "was a sermon in itself," he said.
The community meal is not specifically geared toward feeding the hungry, but rather to break down barriers that have been created in social, economic, political and religious areas. People living alone or in isolated situations, or just interested in community, will also find the Loaves and Fishes Community Meal a good fit, Backstrand said.
"The biggest interest was in building a community that includes all of us," and to create the community meal as a sustainable effort, he added.
The Loaves and Fishes Community Meal was a vision that parishioners knew was too big for them to handle alone. Still, they believed it was a good idea, and the Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee agreed, giving them funding to explore the idea and form an initial committee.
What they found was that many people in the area agreed with them, and in early fall 2011 they looked for people to form a steering committee.
That committee now consists of 13 people representing St. Andrew's, Grace Lutheran, Monroe United Methodist, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, as well as several individuals with connections to local organizations and businesses.
One of the first big hurdles for the committee was to find a permanent site and predictable time to host the meal each month. Grace Lutheran Church offered to provide the spot at its building, and the committee chose to serve the evening meal from 4 to 6 p.m. on the fourth Sunday of every month, hoping it would help many people's end-of-month money crunch.
Organizing an on-going public meal required quite a bit of work and learning. Loaves and Fishes Community Meal has become a tax-exempt organization. It has acquired a state health and food safety license, with one member preparing to become its food safety manager. It found a grant to help purchase dry and cold storage units.
With its state license in hand just this month, the organization wasted no more time to start serving, and thanks to sponsorship from two individuals and their families, the first Loaves and Fishes Community Meal will be held Sunday, April 22.
The meals will be offered at no charge; no RSVP required, Backstrand said.
The meals are estimated to cost about $300 a month, with a variety of menus being planned, and meal planners will work with sponsors' ideas and incorporate local foods.
Loaves and Fishes is not intended to be just an ecumenical and individual community program.
"For a truly community model," the organization is looking for more sponsors and partners in businesses of any size, Backstrand said. All contributions need not be financial; donations may be food items or volunteer time. Volunteers are needed for a variety of tasks, including greeting diners at the door, acting as hosts in the dining room and preparing meals.
Anyone interested in becoming a sponsor or a volunteer or making a donation can contact St. Andrew's Church at 328-8265 or Backstrand at (630) 939-3313.
Their idea of people from all walks of life preparing, serving and partaking in a community meal has taken on a life of its own, with many more local participants joining the effort, to become the Loaves and Fishes Community Meal.
"The meal is to enhance community in our area," said Father Brian Backstrand, the priest at St. Andrew's, "and to provide an opportunity where people can meet, in an era when community is splintered by a lot of different forces that focus on the differences rather than similarities."
The church's ideas for a community meal came together after members' experience with several previous community-help projects, from which they developed a deeper vision of mission and outreach, Backstrand said.
One such project was delivering gift baskets to veterans on Memorial Day last year. Sharing their experiences with each other one Sunday "was a sermon in itself," he said.
The community meal is not specifically geared toward feeding the hungry, but rather to break down barriers that have been created in social, economic, political and religious areas. People living alone or in isolated situations, or just interested in community, will also find the Loaves and Fishes Community Meal a good fit, Backstrand said.
"The biggest interest was in building a community that includes all of us," and to create the community meal as a sustainable effort, he added.
The Loaves and Fishes Community Meal was a vision that parishioners knew was too big for them to handle alone. Still, they believed it was a good idea, and the Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee agreed, giving them funding to explore the idea and form an initial committee.
What they found was that many people in the area agreed with them, and in early fall 2011 they looked for people to form a steering committee.
That committee now consists of 13 people representing St. Andrew's, Grace Lutheran, Monroe United Methodist, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, as well as several individuals with connections to local organizations and businesses.
One of the first big hurdles for the committee was to find a permanent site and predictable time to host the meal each month. Grace Lutheran Church offered to provide the spot at its building, and the committee chose to serve the evening meal from 4 to 6 p.m. on the fourth Sunday of every month, hoping it would help many people's end-of-month money crunch.
Organizing an on-going public meal required quite a bit of work and learning. Loaves and Fishes Community Meal has become a tax-exempt organization. It has acquired a state health and food safety license, with one member preparing to become its food safety manager. It found a grant to help purchase dry and cold storage units.
With its state license in hand just this month, the organization wasted no more time to start serving, and thanks to sponsorship from two individuals and their families, the first Loaves and Fishes Community Meal will be held Sunday, April 22.
The meals will be offered at no charge; no RSVP required, Backstrand said.
The meals are estimated to cost about $300 a month, with a variety of menus being planned, and meal planners will work with sponsors' ideas and incorporate local foods.
Loaves and Fishes is not intended to be just an ecumenical and individual community program.
"For a truly community model," the organization is looking for more sponsors and partners in businesses of any size, Backstrand said. All contributions need not be financial; donations may be food items or volunteer time. Volunteers are needed for a variety of tasks, including greeting diners at the door, acting as hosts in the dining room and preparing meals.
Anyone interested in becoming a sponsor or a volunteer or making a donation can contact St. Andrew's Church at 328-8265 or Backstrand at (630) 939-3313.