Community Action Center to Host a Free Weekly Meal for People in Transition

NORTHFIELD, MINN. (February 4, 2008) – The Community Action Center announced today that plans are underway to provide a hot and healthy dinner to people in the Northfield area who are in transition and could benefit from a free, nutritious meal. The program, which will begin serving meals in April, is called Thursday’s Table. Meals will be served each Thursday at the Northfield Community Resource Center Dining Room between 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. by Northfield volunteers under the supervision of food-handling experts from the Northfield School District. It is estimated that 100 people or more will be served each week.

This initiative began as a grass roots effort spearheaded by two long-time Northfield residents, David Koenig and Don Sahling, who initially had discussed the idea independently with others before joining forces to lead the cause. Koenig said, “This is truly a collaborative effort. Thursday’s Table has been organized as a broad partnership with representatives from the Community Action Center, Northfield School District, Northfield Senior Center, and individuals from a wide range of demographic groups throughout the Northfield area. I am excited to be a part of this important new offering to the community.”

For this program to become sustainable, the community will need volunteers and donors from churches, local businesses, services organization, the colleges and neighborhood groups to step forward and embrace the idea, according to Sahling. “As of the end of 2007, 836 families which translates to more than 3,000 individuals – many of them children – were certified by the Community Action Center to receive food assistance via the CAC Food Shelf,” Sahling explained. “It’s quite obvious the need is there and we see this as a win-win-win for the volunteers, for those in transition and for the community as a whole,” he said. The meals are available to everyone with no specific time limit for participating in the meals.

Here is how the program works. Staff from the Community Action Center and Northfield School District Food Service will plan the meals and buy the food. Thursday’s Table volunteers will then prepare and serve the meals under the supervision of a Certified Food Preparer from the Northfield School District. Volunteers will be invited to bring their families and friends to join the dinner while the volunteers are serving the meals. By blending the family and friends of the volunteers with the people in transition, the program hopes to accomplish two goals. First, sharing a meal with neighbors is a tremendous community builder. Second, since there will be no discernible difference between the volunteers’ families and friends, and those in need, the potential stigma of receiving a free meal will be removed. The fear of being stigmatized is considered one of the significant barriers to people taking advantage of this type of service even when they have a significant need for it.

To further enhance the offering, representatives from the Northfield School District’s Community Services Division will be on hand each Thursday to provide additional information on programs offered through the school district and there will be a special focus on activities for children.  In addition, the Northfield Community Action Center’s Food Shelf and Clothes Closet are open on Thursday evenings.

Northfield Community Action Center Executive Director Jim Blaha said, “We are delighted to be involved with this project. On a daily basis, our staff experiences firsthand the tremendous needs of our friends and neighbors and this new program is one additional way in which we can combat poverty in our community and help people transition to a new station in life.”

People who would like to volunteer for Thursday’s Table can contact David Koenig at 507/645-8899 or e-mail info@thursdaystable.org.  People who would like to make a donation can donate online, send a check made payable to “CAC-Thursday’s Table” to the Northfield Community Action Center, 1651 Jefferson Parkway, #HS200, Northfield, MN  55057, contact Don Sahling at 507/645-9220 or e-mail donsahling@aol.com. The Thursday’s Table website is http://www.thursdaystable.org, where groups or individuals can sign-up to volunteer.