43
Valley church serves free turkey dinner
Photo
Pastor Joseph Delapa of High Pointe Church in Lowellville sorts through supplies for the free Thanksgiving dinner the church will sponsor Nov. 17 at Struthers High School. It’s the 14th such event for the Assembly of God congregation and is among a host of such dinners in the Valley.
By LINDA M. LINONIS
lowellville
A small congregation of about 60 people attend High Pointe Church. But what they lack in numbers, they make up for in heart.
For the 14th year, the Assembly of God church at 5716 Struthers Road, will sponsor a free community Thanksgiving dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. next Thursday at Struthers High School, 111 Euclid Ave., Struthers. They’re expecting about 400 guests who will be entertained with music by Steve Fazzini.
Pastor Joseph Delapa, who has led the church for about a year, said the congregation is “happy to do it” and feels “blessed” that it is able to arrange the dinner.
Also pitching in are members of Kingdom Community Church in Struthers and Struthers United Methodist Church.
The pastor said the congregation donates toward the meal and receives donations from area businesses.
“We’re thankful for anyone who has the heart to help people,” Pastor Delapa said.
Church members coordinate the free dinner. They cook about 23 20-pound turkeys, and about 40 pumpkin pies are made or donated. The trimmings include stuffing, mashed potatoes and vegetables.
Pastor Delapa said the free Thanksgiving dinner reflects the church’s Feed the Need project, which is a grocery distribution from 10 a.m. to noon the fourth Saturday of the month. “The church typically distributes about 150 bags of groceries,” Pastor Delapa said.
Guests at the free turkey dinner also will go home with a bag of groceries as part of November’s Feed the Need effort. This weekend, the pastor said, the congregation will pack some 300 bags of groceries for distribution at the dinner.
“The whole church is behind the project,” he said.
He noted that the community dinner grew out of the grocery distribution. “Feeding people” is the basis of the project, the minister said.
Pastor Delapa said the projected attendance reflects the economy and “a lot of need.”
He added that the church is following its directive to “love God, serve others and share the stories of God in our lives" through community activities that help people.