From left to right, volunteers Jinx Watson, Beatrice Holt, Todd Sherline, and daughter Poppy prepare for guests at an earlier ORUUC Stone Soup Free Community Meal. The next meal will be served tonight Friday, September 26. Everyone is welcome. (File photo)
The Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church will celebrate four years of the Stone Soup free community meal tonight (Friday, September 26).
It’s the last community meal at the church’s current location at Oak Ridge Turnpike and Robertsville Road. The church is moving to a new home on Oak Ridge Turnpike north of the Joe L. Evins Federal Building.
“Everyone is welcome to come to the fourth birthday celebration,” a press release said.
Dine-in or takeout will be available from 5 to 6 p.m. in the Social Hall of the church located at 1500 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge. Diners will be served homemade beanie weenie soup, pimiento cheese sandwiches, classic coleslaw, and chocolate cake.
“This will be the final Stone Soup meal at our present location,” said Jinx Watson, Stone Soup program coordinator. “Beginning in October, the meal will be held in our new location at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike, next to Summit Medical in Oak Ridge. We want to start our fifth year making sure that we emphasize that everyone in the community is invited to our community meals.”
“We strive to serve nutritious, homemade meals to our guests at every Stone Soup meal,” said team member Abbie Moore. “Tables are set with flower centerpieces and real China and silverware. We encourage our guests to stay awhile after dinner to visit with each other and the team members. There are a lot of connections that are made among guests. We hope everyone comes to help us celebrate this special occasion.”
The Stone Soup Ministry meal is held the last Friday of every month. More than 5,000 meals have been served since the meal program started in September 2010. Food for the free monthly meal is provided by the ORUUC congregation along with financial support from several members of the Oak Ridge community.
The Stone Soup Ministry name is derived from the “Stone Soup Fable,” a medieval tale in which a hungry stranger came upon a small village. Having no food, he put water and a few stones in a large pot to boil. The villagers, who were suffering from a meager harvest, each contributed a bit of food, a carrot, a potato, etc. In the end, the stranger and the villagers sat down to the meal together. In modern times, the story is usually told as a lesson in cooperation.
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