The Gathering’s Thanksgiving Meal

This past Saturday, November 23rd, the Gathering served a Thanksgiving brunch that consisted of turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, TONS of pies (with whipped topping, of course), gravy, sweet potatoes, yams (with marshmallows and brown sugar), cranberry sauce and carrots. 590 guests were served at our three Saturday meal sites.

Thanksgiving turkey prep

The Gathering has been so blessed to have numerous volunteers and generous individuals calling in to inquire about volunteering on Thanksgiving Day. While we appreciate the community support, the Gathering does not serve on the day of Thanksgiving (Thurs. Nov 28th). We serve ten meals every week throughout the year. On Thanksgiving Day, many of our guests take the day to be with family. In addition, there are many service organizations/churches/food pantries, etc. that serve delicious meals on this special day. So instead of repeating meals, we focus our attention on a meal the Saturday before Thanksgiving Day.

An AMAZING number of group and individual volunteers worked together to make the meal happen. Special thanks to Fox Point Lutheran Church, Immanuel Presbyterian, St. Mark’s Episcopal, Joe Bruno and more for preparing turkeys.

In addition, thanks to Southwood Glenn Elementary’s Market Day, Milwaukee College Prep, Joy Global and more for bringing amazing pies. Also SPECIAL THANKS to all of our cooks, coordinators and volunteers at the meal on Saturday. We could not have done it without you.

The Gathering's Easter Meal

On Saturday, March 30, 468 Gathering guests were served a special Easter Meal at our three Saturday lunch sites. After hours of preparing ham with pineapple, sweet potatoes, yams, assorted dessert trays and green bean casseroles, the cooks, coordinators and volunteers at the Gathering’s three Saturday meal sites were ready to do what they do best: feed the Gathering’s community!

Volunteers preparing dessert tray at St. James

The volunteer cooks arrived around seven in the morning to start preparing the food. There were three cook teams, one at each site. A couple of the teams had Gathering veterans who had been volunteering for decades but there were also some relatively new cooks. After the cooks prepared the food and had it all waiting to go in the warmers/ovens, the volunteer coordinators sprung into action. Coordinators make sure things are running smoothly and that all volunteers from the serving group have a role during the meal.

Volunteer Cooks preparing green bean casserole at the South Side

One such coordinator is Ellie Moseley. Ellie has been coordinating with the Gathering for over fifteen years along with her husband, Harry. Ellie and Harry got involved when they moved to Milwaukee. They used to volunteer at a soup kitchen in Indianapolis and they wanted to find another opportunity to do similar work. Ellie explained that one of her favorite parts of the Gathering is getting to interact with the guests. “Everyone is so nice. There is one woman who comes regularly and wraps her arms around me and gives me a big hug.” Together, guests and volunteers can create an encouraging sense of community at the Gathering.

Volunteers "suit up" at the South Side Site

Serving group volunteers begin showing up around 9:45, “suit up” with gloves, aprons, hats/hair nets, and set about wrapping silverware, pouring drinks, buttering bread, making salad, preparing dessert trays, and setting places for the guests. Thanks to Greater Spring Hill, St. Boniface and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Grafton, the Gathering’s Easter meals ran smoothly with the help of 45 total volunteers! After all the preparation the meal was served from 11:30 to 12:30. The Gathering was able to serve 468 guests, 46 of whom were children.  Included in the Easter meal were treat bags donated by the different volunteer groups.

Beautiful Easter treat bags, thanks St. Boniface!

Thanks to the commitment of 8 cooks, 8 coordinators, 45 volunteers and a community of guests, the Easter meal was a big success. The meal was a special experience with guests eating and laughing side by side. Ellie explained the importance of this holiday fellowship when she said, “Any holiday is more elaborate, a bigger crowd. We work to make it as joyful as possible. We are really here to feed people’s spirits, not just their bodies.”