Festive Feast

Kelli McRobert | Jan 05, 2022

The weather looked quite treacherous as the communities of South & Central Frontenac awoke to an icy day Christmas morning. Black ice had glazed every street and while main roadways had been plowed and sanded, at least once, the side roads continued to present a challenge with deep ditches and slippery slopes.

While Santa had the advantage of ‘air travel’ many of us did not and we had to scrape windshields, walk like penguins, and leave our homes early to get to the Verona Lions Hall without incident. We planned our cautious route knowing that our main hill would be the biggest slope and we maneuvered the truck with care, sliding down and modulating the ABS to prevent us from skidding through the intersection at Hwy 38.

With a deep sigh of relief, we continued along the road with an eerie apocalyptic vibe as cars were frozen in time and there was no bustle of pedestrians or traffic as homeowners hunkered down to enjoy a quiet morning of gift giving and sharing of stories and family time.

Upon arrival at the hall, we were warmly greeted and managed to get a lovely, covered parking spot so we would not have to scrape the truck, yet another time.

Doreen Morey welcomed us into the warmth, and we could smell turkey and dressing as it wafted past us. Comforting, savoury, and all the while stirring up memories of past Christmas’ with family and friends. We were new to the area, so we decided to volunteer our time to help with the Festive Feast that is an annual event and was the caring genius of Doug & Joyce Casement, and John & Sheila Steele. When I asked how this all began, I was taken down memory lane and they spoke fondly of Inie Platenius, who has since passed away, and how it was her dream to have a sit-down meal on Christmas for anyone that may be alone. Inie was a visionary who saw great things for this small town and her contagious passion continues through those who loved her and miss her dearly.

Fast forward 10 years and the feast looks a bit different as the team adapted to COVID restrictions and this was the first time to offer strictly take out so the tradition could continue. The previous eat-in meal would host approximately 65-100 people and offered entertainment and children’s games; it was a way to share stories and gather as a community. Since the beginning, this group has been providing warm meals on Christmas day for anyone that was interested. With a quick e-mail or phone call, you were added to a list, that has steadily increased annually, and on this occasion, you could pop by to pick up the hot meal in a convenient, safe, drive through setting.

Planning and organization begins days in advance with a behind the scenes frenetic energy that includes, calls, emails, pickups, and deliveries. Slicing, dicing, peeling, and boiling continue for the week as each puzzle piece begins to fit in place for the final ‘reveal’. Volunteers are coordinated to perform each task, buzzing around the hive, the background humming with a benevolent tone.

Early Christmas morning the ‘packaging’ and final preparations continued, stations were laid out in the donated Lions Hall, where volunteers dished out delectable, thick, chocolate, and vanilla cake slices.

White chocolate wafers adorned the cakes with festive flare. Across the way the ladies were busy catching up on local news and stuffing buttered buns into baggies.

Other stations were the coleslaw prep and cranberries, where friends could be heard chatting about the weather and laughing as they manipulated tight lids on tiny packages. One volunteer ‘elf’ was prepping the candy canes, napkins, and chocolates so every person had a special festive treat to celebrate and know that someone cared. The kitchen was lively with more ‘elves’ who were mashing, washing, stirring, and mixing the main course and sides including corn, mashed potatoes, turkey, stuffing, and gravy.

After about 2 hours of prepping, the parade of coolers arrived, and a buffet style table was set up so the ‘food distribution line’ could begin. Sterno pots, crock pots, and utensils donned the lengthy tables and volunteers lined up with military precision to dish out the grub and then keep it warm in the coolers until the guests arrived for curbside pick-up. The plan was for just over 100 meal recipients from all walks of life. Many folks called in on behalf of a neighbour and then volunteered to come out and gather the food for personal delivery to those that struggled with transportation, mobility, or the weather.

At 11:30 the first guest arrived, and everyone kicked into action managing to distribute over 110 meals within one hour and delivering to many locals who had called in the same day, hopeful that someone could navigate the treacherous roads.

This group managed the jolly chaos with ease as each member busied themselves with handing out bags, checking off names (we joked about this as ‘checking the list twice’ and ‘naughty or nice’, yes, Christmas humour) and coordinating drivers, addresses, and who got what etc….by 12:30 the remaining few meals were out the door for final delivery and the clean up continued back of house with dish washing, tidying, and sorting.

This was a great community initiative that I hope continues for many years. To meet so many kind people in one place was a real pleasure and the recipients were grateful for a meal and a friendly hello as some had recently fallen on difficult times.

Thank you to all the volunteers who made the event fun, friendly, and festive for our first time with this group. When we were asked if we were heading home for Christmas, I grinned and replied, “we ARE home!”

For more information on volunteer opportunities in your area be sure to check out the local newspaper, clubs, churches, and community groups.