By Ann Lombardo
COLON (SNR) – St. Joseph Parish in Colon made the tough decision this year to call off their annual roast beef dinner, held in early October for the last 34 years.
Late summer and into the fall season, and sometimes well beyond the holidays, rural Nebraska parishes across the Diocese of Lincoln engage in their annual ritual of parish fundraising meals.
Menus vary from roast beef dinners with all the trimmings, to soup and sandwiches, or a pancake feed. But the goal is universal: to raise the additional funds needed to supplement the income garnered by weekly Sunday collections.
For many churches, these events are directly responsible for raising the monies needed to support tuition fees at area parochial schools so that every child has the opportunity to attend. Among numerous multi-generational families, Catholic schools are deemed essential for each successive generation.
But it would be an inaccurate representation of these yearly autumn events to imply that they are merely about cash flow. In reality, it is closer to an immense, round-robin family reunion.
Adult children return to the parish where they received the sacraments, and assist in peeling mountains of potatoes or flipping endless dozens of eggs. New grandbabies arrive in infant seats and strollers to be cooed over by every grandmother in the crowd. Parish young adults typically share the burden by manning the children’s games. Youngsters queue up for face-painting and the soda ring toss, or wait at the fish pond where they cast a line for some unknown treasure.
The market table is another essential stop. Tables are loaded with the last harvest of family gardens, home-canned fruits and veggies, potted plants and crafts, and even homemade soap made from goats’ milk. Guests travel in search of that elusive delectable “pastry that my grandmother used to make when I was growing up.”
Octogenarian siblings are adamant in their commitment to support each other’s parishes. They linger over coffee as the auctioneer cajoles the crowd into one yet higher bid and throws in a dozen kolaches leftover from the market table to sweeten the deal. And parting farewells typically include a version of “And we’ll see you next week at our parish.”
As years pass, the babies become the young adults manning the games. The teens are now frying the bacon or slicing pies and cakes for the dessert table. Great-grandparents step aside and let the “young” folk pick up the reins, while they now amble to the old-timer’s corner and reminisce about those who journeyed on to a better place since the last roast beef dinner.
And the cycle goes on and on. But not in 2020.
COVID-19 has blatantly disrupted lives across the globe, and Nebraska’s rural parishes are not exempt.
At St Joseph Parish in Colon, new pastor Father Cole Kennett has had to manage the current situation – the financial and the social – just as pastors all over the diocese. Facing a fundraising deficit of five figures, Father Kennett and the roast beef dinner team prayerfully discerned a decision to cancel this year’s event.
Jennie and Jessie Dunavan, co-chairs, explained that many contributing factors led to the decision.
“We recognized that the majority of our parishioners are aging, and that puts them at greater risk of contracting the virus,” Jesse said. “We could not in good conscience expose them.”
“We also realized that if an outbreak was traced to our dinner, then the state could impose further restrictions on our parish or village, and we don’t want to see that happen,” Jennie added. The parish’s roast beef dinner has an excellent reputation, serving an average of 1,170 meals in recent years, and is fortunate to receive the support of many people coming from Omaha and other places outside the immediate area.
“We want very much to preserve the integrity of that reputation,” Jennie remarked.
In a letter addressed to all parishioners, Father Kennett explained the need to find a way to address the shortfall. He has divided the fundraising deficit by the number of registered households and is asking each family to prayerfully contribute their portion.
The mechanics of the annual dinner give proof to the fact that the parishioners of St. Joseph are not strangers to generosity. Households are typically asked to donate homemade kolaches, horn rolls and pies to the meal. They also donate items for both the silent and live auctions, soda for the kids, items for the market table and help defray the cost of the beef through monetary contributions. There are also countless hours of labor donated, whether seeking donations for raffle prizes from the community, or cooking a 30-pound roast at home the night before.
Reflecting on current events, Father Kennett likened the circumstances to Moses standing at the shore of the Red Sea.
“With Egyptian chariots following and thousands of Israelites running for their lives, the sight of the Sea must have been daunting and overwhelming,” he said. “For Moses to lead the chosen people out of Egypt and into the desert Moses had to abandon himself into God’s hands and trust. The walls of the sea were opened and the people of God were led through. God’s promise and fidelity to Moses was vividly revealed because Moses chose to trust God’s invitation. We are next to Moses and we stand before the Sea of what is unknown. I trust that God will be faithful to us as He was faithful to Moses. We will cross through this present Sea of turmoil as He reveals His path for us.”
