Volunteer Brenda Chandler removes a pan of stuffing from an oven on Nov. 23 at the Greenwood United Methodist Church ministry The Shepherd’s Table, a meal program instituted by the church 10 years ago to feed those in need. Volunteers cook a homemade meal and serve it every Tuesday to anyone who wants a free meal.
SCOTT ROBERSON | DAILY JOURNAL
The smell of turkey casserole and gravy filled the kitchen at Greenwood United Methodist Church.
Volunteers hustled among the pans of food, making preparations for the coming mass of local residents in need of a meal. Once people started arriving outside the church, meals would be boxed up and carried out to waiting cars.
For the past 10 years, the church has made the weekly lunch available for anyone who needs it. The ministry, known as The Shepherd’s Table, has served nearly 39,000 meals since it started in 2011. Those who volunteer their time to cook, prepare, serve and clean up for the meals have put in more than 21,700 hours of work.
The Shepherd’s Table has not only helped stem hunger in Johnson County, but fostered a sense of belonging and community among all those involved.
“When we started it, we thought that fellowship here — to sit down with a meal — was important,” said Julie Penoff, a co-founder of the ministry. “Even though we aren’t eating inside together, we still have a group that gets their meals and sits out in the parking lot to eat together. They’ve had some ups and downs, but they’ve been able to support each other.”
The Shepherd’s Table was envisioned by Penoff and Jane Stilley, members at Greenwood United Methodist Church who had ongoing conversations about the best ways to help the surrounding community.
Eventually, they landed on the idea to host a weekly lunch for those in need.
They started researching what it would take to bring this kind of event to the church, including visiting Roberts Park United Methodist Church in Indianapolis for its Soup’s On event.
“After we learned more about it, we thought that yes, this is something we could do,” Penoff said.
The pair recruited a group of 12 to 15 volunteers to do the work to prepare and serve the meals. On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving 2011, the first meal was served on real dinnerware with silverware.
Though Stilley died in 2020, Penoff and other organizers have carried on her mission and vision.
The entire ministry is made possible by donations. To help the church congregation support the meals, a board outside the church kitchen informed people what supplies were needed and how they could donate.
Penoff, Anthony and fellow volunteer Brenda Chandler take turns cooking the meals, readying a menu of main dishes and sides for between 75 and 95 people. Menus are planned a month in advance, so they can be published on the calendar of free community meals put together by a group of about 10 area churches.
Planning and preparing that much food took some time to get right, Anthony said.
“It was a learning curve for me, never having cooked for 80 or 90 people,” she said. “So the first time, I was really nervous.”
As the weekly meals became established, others within the church offered their special talents to help. One member, Gloria Stachel, offered to play her piano during the lunch.
The performances proved to be so popular that during warmer weather, she brought her piano toward the front of the church so those who came by to get their meals could enjoy it.
“They get some music with their food,” Penoff said.
Over the past 10 years, the weekly meals have become a hub for fellowship, particularly for older adults who live around the church, Anthony said. They’ve witnessed important friendships fostered and carried on each week.
“It’s an opportunity for socialization,” Penoff said. “They love to come and sit to have lunch together.”
When the coronavirus pandemic struck central Indiana, the ministry had to close its doors for 13 weeks. By shifting its model from a dine-in meal to boxed to-go food, organizers were able to bring The Shepherd’s Table back in July of 2020.
Now, when diners come to the church, they pull into a specially marked area where a volunteer finds out how many meals are needed. That information is radioed inside to the team cooking the food that Tuesday, then the meals are bagged up and run out to the waiting patron.
“That way, the food is always hot whenever they get it,” Anthony said.
The hope is that soon, they can resume gathering indoors for the weekly meal, Penoff said.
“Until then, we’ll continue to do the drive-thru,” she said.
