Derrick Miller
MARLOW — MARLOW — Thanksgiving isn’t quite the same without a large meal with a turkey centerpiece.
And Marlow’s First Baptist Church continued the tradition Thursday with its Thanksgiving dinner. This was the fifth year First Baptist Church has taken reigns of the community dinner, although the dinner has been a long-standing tradition in the Marlow community..
Pam and Jim Spurlock head the meal up every year. This year was no exception.
“It went great,” Pam Spurlock said. “We had one of the largest groups to date.”
Spurlock estimated between 400 and 500 people ate at the church, 300 take outs were delivered to homebound people and another 150 to 200 meals were taken to the Stephens County Jail.
The community dinner volunteers usually cook about 1,000 meals. This year, that number was cutting it close.
By 11 a.m., all of the take out orders were prepared and ready to deliver. But it was non-stop running for the volunteers from 11 a.m. until 1:15 p.m., Spurlock said.
She said there were some concerns about whether there would be enough food this year. But those concerns were put to rest when things began to slow. There was still plenty of food for the jail. The food, including sides and desserts, was prepared by the volunteers.
“We were worried for a little while,” Spurlock said.
While there may not be a definitive answer of why there was an influx of people attending the dinner, the volunteers rationalized one reason.
“The economy is what we were assuming,” Spurlock said.
The dinner has been used to aid those who aren’t able to have the traditional foods for the holiday or are unable to leave their homes during the day. Spurlock said the Thanksgiving meal is a way for people to celebrate the holiday and to enjoy the company of others.
“We had several people who said they didn’t have food at home,” Spurlock said. “We help people who can’t afford anything.”
Usually, there are between 60 and 100 volunteers helping with the event, whether cooking or delivering meals. Spurlock said delivering meals is just other way the church reaches out to the community through the dinner.
“A lot of them don’t have, not only food, but contact with people,” Spurlock said. “We go in and talk to them for a little bit.”
— Derrick Miller is a reporter for The Duncan Banner. He can be reached at 580-255-5354, Ext. 160, or via e-mail at derrick.miller@duncanbanner.com.
