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St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Andalusia brought joy to the 2024 holiday season through its annual Jo’s Community Dinners in November and December with nearly 1,250 meals served to the local community.

The church served close to 700 meals on Thanksgiving Day and close to 550 on Christmas Day. St. Mary’s Rector Eric Mancil said it was a record number of meals at Thanksgiving.

“Being able to offer our Jo’s Community Dinners for Thanksgiving and Christmas is what being a church is all about: loving and serving others as Christ taught us,” Mancil said. “We do not charge for the meal or expect anything in return. We just offer it to anyone in the community who needs it. Some people live alone and don’t have family for the holidays. Some people are homebound and rely on our deliveries to get a hot meal. Being able to serve the community in this special way is such a joy and a blessing for our parish.”

Although many of this year’s meals were delivered, Mancil said that several people came to the church for dine-in and carryout options. For the past several years, Jan Morris has helped coordinate the meals. Recently, Terry Kyzar took over as the coordinator.

The ministry has been a local holiday tradition for at least 20 years and was started by Josephine Mosdell, a St. Mary’s parishioner. Originally called ACORN dinners, the name was changed to Jo’s Community Dinners when Josephine passed away.

According to Mancil, several elements go into making the event possible each year.

On the day before each event, responsibilities include advertising, ordering the food, taking reservations over the phone for delivery orders, preparing the food, and organizing routes for delivery drivers.

On the day of the dinner, people come in to complete duties that range from picking up boxes of meals to being delivered and making final meal preparations in the kitchen to serving food and washing dishes.

“It is a huge team effort, and it takes many hands. On average, we have anywhere from eight to 10 people doing food prep two days before the meal. Then, on the day of the event, we typically have anywhere from 12 to 15 people in the kitchen and on the serving line and multiple volunteers making deliveries. What’s special about this ministry is that we have not only St. Mary’s parishioners but also volunteers from the community who come in to help and make deliveries. While it is a St. Mary’s ministry, it takes a community effort, for sure,” he said.

Mancil added that the menu does not change much from year to year.

“On Thanksgiving, every plate includes turkey breast, cornbread dressing with gravy and cranberry sauce, green beans, corn, Sister Schubert rolls, and dessert. On Christmas, the menu is ham, cornbread dressing with gravy and cranberry sauce, green beans, corn, Sister Schubert rolls, and dessert,” he said.

Two local churches assist St. Mary’s by donating desserts each year. Christ the King Catholic Church provides them at Thanksgiving, and Andalusia First Methodist Church offers them at Christmas.

“We fund this ministry solely from donations from the community. Several civic organizations make yearly contributions, which helps tremendously. We also get donations from members of the community who support this ministry and want to see it thrive,” Mancil said.

For more information about Jo’s Community Dinners email rector@stmarysandalusia.org or call the St. Mary’s Episcopal Church office at 334-222-2487.