The spirit of the holiday season was in full bloom this past weekend as three temporary “soup kitchens” were opened in the county, where scores of free meals were served to any and all visitors as an impetus to bring our community together.
The kitchens were open for business from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, at Knead More Massage, 466 County Road 11, Bellefontaine; Wake Up The World Ministry, 600 E. Brown Ave., Bellefontaine; and the Galilee Lutheran Church, 301 Lincoln Blvd. in Russells Point, all of which were staffed by volunteers who prepared and brought everything from smoked turkey to strawberry cheesecake to feed those who gathered for the free meal.
The idea for the soup kitchens came from Dustin Ragland, the administrator of Facebook’s United Silent Majority of Logan County.
“I think that it’s important to build a community atmosphere in our communities and neighborhoods throughout the area because that’s what’s important, caring for and loving the people who are our neighbors,” Ragland said of the soup kitchens.
“Even if you don’t know your neighbors, this is a good opportunity to get to know them,” Ragland continued.
In addition to the wide variety of foods and other goodies that were available to all visitors at the three kitchens, Santa Claus made an appearance at each of the locales, where children of all ages could fill Santa in whether they have been naughty or nice over the last year and perhaps even give the Merry Old Elf an inkling of what they would like to find under the tree Christmas morning.
Ragland said that plans are being made to conduct a food drive in the next several weeks to help feed those in need over the holidays. Further details on the food drive will be announced, to afford those in our community with an opportunity to offer a holiday meal or two to our neighbors who need it most.
