Community Fall Supper Nov. 5 at Knox United Church

By Heather Cameron
Taber Times
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Knox United Church is hosting their 2023 Community Fall Supper on Nov. 5 at Knox United Church in Taber.

“It’s a good community event,” Julie Urano of Knox United Church said. “Everyone always looked forward to the fall supper that comes up. The meals are great and it brings the communities together; it’s a night out to eat and visit.”

Urano says that this event started in 1994 as a community outreach to get people to come to the church and also to raise money to help with church expenses, including electricity, gas, and water, but is now an event where people can get takeout meals from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

“People can call or stop by the church to volunteer to help, there is lots of work and effort to make this event happen and we need all the people we can get to help,” Urano said. “Meals this year are $20 a meal which consists of roast beef, gravy, mashed garlic potatoes, cabbage rolls, carrots, coleslaw, buns and dessert. This is a community event, everyone or anyone is welcome to help and attend.”

Urano says that the event includes food donations from many companies such as Lamb Weston, who donated the garlic mashed potatoes; Van Giessen, who donated the carrots; Gouw Onions, who donated the onions; Sudo Farms, who donated the cabbage or cabbage rolls and coleslaw; IGA, who donated some of the ingredients to the cabbage rolls or coleslaw; and volunteers, who buy and donate cakes and buns.

Preparation for the event, Urano says, begins the Friday before when volunteers come and pick up the ingredients to cook the carrots, and make all the coleslaw. Then, Urano says, on the Saturday before, the buns are bagged, the coleslaw is put into containers, and the cabbage rolls are made. On the Sunday, Urano says, the cakes are cut, the gravy is cooked, and the cabbage rolls and carrots are cooked and brought to the church and put into a to-go container. From there, Urano says, the church has the kids run meals out to vehicles who come for them.

“The response has been amazing, as so many people help and attend,” Urano said. “Before COVID, we usually had around 800 meals to serve or through take out at the community centre. Since COVID, though, we do a take-out only and are serving 500 meals this year. We’d like to thank the community and all the people who volunteer their time and the people who donate food to make this event possible.”