They came from near, they came from far. (I saw car license plates from Iowa, Wisconsin, Texas, and California.)
They came by car, they came by truck, they came by SUV, they came by shuttle bus (St. John’s Lutheran Home and Good Samaritan Home).
There were young, old, and in-between ages of male and female attendees.
They came by ones, twos, threes, and fours. They all came to eat at the annual social event of the year (Soup and Pie Supper) Monday, Sept. 21 at Central Freeborn Lutheran Church.
They were welcomed by parking lot attendants Bob Hanson, Barry Mosher, Gene Wangen and Roger Wangen who did an excellent job as no paperwork was needed for any car insurance company.
Six hundred and eighteen people came, got out of their vehicles and walked at a fast pace (they left at a much slower pace) to the special entry door (only VIPs were allowed – they all qualified) to be greeted by Wayne Indrelie.
After paying for the meal, decision time began. Four different kinds of soup tempted you plus gluten free if you decided. After the first bowl of soup it was time to check the elasticity of your undergarment with more soup or your choice of pie with or without Blue Bunny Vanilla ice cream.
If you had to wait to be seated to eat, you could wait in the church proper with music provided by Orville and Irene Goskeson or Ken Bertelson and Millard Hamborg. (It was O.K. to enjoy the music after eating with toe tapping at the same time.)
You had your choice of seating (inside or under the tent on the patio).
Who were the 618 people? They were from all walks of life. For example: Real estate agents, pancake flippers, hospital Auxilians, American Legion Auxilians, college officials, nurses, truckers, teachers, preachers, farmers, Sturgis bikers, lawyers, politicians, Beaver Lake plus Geneva Lake residents, President of Southeast Minnesota Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Social Security-ites and wanna-be Social Security-ites.
The Central Church council again proved their prophetic ability in selecting the date. There was very little wind, no rain, sunshine with the temperature in the low 70s. (A tentative date of Monday, Sept. 19, 2016 will be verified later).
A very special thanks to the people of Central Freeborn Lutheran Church for making this event a success. Mary Ann Atchison was the chair with Gary Goette, Genie Hanson, and Ole Olson the four co-chairs.
Summarizing: Great food in a rural setting, that’s what America is all about. Amen!
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Bob is a retired AAL (Aid Association for Lutherans) agent, currently working on his master’s degree in Volunteering. His wife, Genie, is a retired RN, currently working on her doctor’s degree in Volunteering. They have two children, Deb in North Carolina, and Dan in Vermont. Bob says if you enjoy his column, let him know. If you don’t enjoy it, keep on reading, it can get worse. Words of wisdom: There is always room for God.