Members of the Hillside Christian Fellowship youth group Cutting
Edge served the homeless at an elegant holiday banquet Dec. 22
decked out in black serving uniforms.
Ben Bannister, the youth pastor, had a vision that was inspired
by a scripture in the bible, according to a press release –
”
When you give a banquet do not invite your friends, relatives or
neighbors. If you do they have the ability to invite you back, but
when you have a banquet invite the poor, the crippled, the lame,
the blind and you will be blessed…
”
Members of the Hillside Christian Fellowship youth group Cutting Edge served the homeless at an elegant holiday banquet Dec. 22 decked out in black serving uniforms.
Ben Bannister, the youth pastor, had a vision that was inspired by a scripture in the bible, according to a press release -“When you give a banquet do not invite your friends, relatives or neighbors. If you do they have the ability to invite you back, but when you have a banquet invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind and you will be blessed…”
Members of the Homeless Task Force helped get the news out on the streets to the homeless staying at the shelter or those who are still on the streets.
“We wanted to do something that would be very special for the homeless in our community,” said Dori Bannister, a pastor at Hillside Christian Fellowship, in a press release. “So many are struggling. So many are cold and have lost so much. The event was beautiful. To watch their faces walk into the banquet room made all the time and work well worth it.”
Dori shared that one woman said she felt like royalty when she arrived for the dinner.
“There was a lot of laughter and excitement,” Dori said. “The tables were done with linens, candelabras and the finest of china and crystal. The Christmas trees were lit up with lights and full of presents that had been personally picked for the guests.”
The dinner was catered by The Best of Times restaurant and included turkey with all the trimmings, with Martinelli’s sparkling apple cider as the drink of choice.
The banquet served as a chance to help the homeless, but also to give members of the youth group a chance to serve, “hopefully to let them experience the joy there is in giving to others,” Dori said.
The youth worked as waiters, serving cider and food, and also handed out raffle tickets for the evening. The meal ended with coffee and homemade desserts.
The homeless residents who attended all received gifts. A tree in the church was hung with personalized gift ideas and members of the congregation donated items such as leather boots, new jeans, cowboy hats, a Raider’s jacket and more.
“It was stuff that went beyond necessity,” Dori said. “We wanted them to have that feeling – that memory from when things were more normal, when they were at home with their families.”
Dori noted that the raffle items were different than those at other events that often include trinkets for a to display in one’s home. For the raffle, she purchased items such as flashlights, water bottles or chocolates.
“I think many realize that times are hard and most of us are one pay check away from living on the streets and being dependent on community services to meet our basic needs,” she said.
She offered a challenge to those in the community to spend the New Year making a difference for those less fortunate.
