The beloved dinner season is still going strong but will soon wind down. Recently Dan and I were blessed by two annual dinners a few miles to the southwest of Perry.
The first was the Guthrie Center United Methodist Church dinner held each year on a Wednesday in October.
Guthrie Center has a population of around 1,500. It is the county seat of Guthrie County. It was platted in 1856 and named after Capt. Edwin B. Guthrie. The railroad went through the town in 1879, and it was incorporated in 1880.
Guthrie Center and the area around it hosts a multitude of fall church-sponsored dinners each year.
Each year I really look forward to the Guthrie Center Methodists hosting their dinner. They have the best pork roast that I have ever tasted. I will say that this pork roast is what they serve in Heaven for Sunday dinner.
Along with the pork roast, they serve mashed potatoes, dressing, gravy, green beans and a multitude of salads and desserts.
We did not leave Perry until 5:30 p.m., when Dan got home from work, and we got to the church just before 6:30 p.m. and had to wait our turn to eat by sitting in the sanctuary.
It was interesting to look at the old stained-glass windows. Some of the church was built in the 1950s, and I never can tell whether others part of the church are from the 1890s or not, but the stained glass windows are very old. I found it unusual that one of the windows was donated by the Civil War Veterans Group the Grand Army of the Republic and their Women’s Auxiliary, the Woman’s Relief Corps.
We finally got to eat, but the pork roast was dangerously low, the dressing out and nearly every dessert gone. We felt smitten like sinners in the hands of an angry God. That is why you do not want to be late to a beloved dinner event such as this.
We still had plenty to eat. I did get some pork roast, but not as much as I would have liked. It was as delicious as ever.
That evening there was also a chicken and biscuit dinner held at the Wiota United Methodist Church. Unfortunately, time, distance and a generous portion of food at Guthrie Center prevented a visit to them. I had to send them their donation by mail.
The next night we went to the Linden United Methodist Church and their annual Hunter’s Steak Dinner. Linden is a town of around 200 people located in southwestern Dallas County.
I like old churches because you see interesting things. The bathroom door was labeled as the wash room. I have not heard of a bathroom being referred to in this way for years, probably since the days when I attended elementary school in a building built in 1897.
The Hunter’s Steak is a minute steak in a gravy. It is outstanding! There were also mashed potatoes with a thick gravy like my mom makes at home, corn, green beans, harvard beets which you see nowhere else and a variety of desserts.
This time of year a lot of the dinners consist of chicken noodles, which are great, but it is nice also to have these two churches offer their specialties, which are a nice change and found nowhere else.
As if these joys were not fulfilling enough, this past Sunday offered Dan and I new blessings for the beloved dinner season.
First was a chicken and noodle dinner at the Dexter United Methodist Church. The dinner is held in their community center, which was built in 2006. As always, we were warmly welcomed by the members of the church, who probably watch for Dan and me to show up.
At the Linden dinner the Thursday before, one of the ladies who works at the Dexter dinners came up to Dan to remind him about the upcoming Dexter dinner, and we blessed her unaware.
During the Dexter dinner, it took Dan a long time to eat because so many ladies kept coming up to talk to him about other upcoming dinners in the area, and he would ask people who were wearing t-shirts from their respective churches about dinners in the area.
I guess that there are worse hobbies. Dan did find out about the Stuart United Methodist Church Dinner, which we hope to attend next year.
The chicken and noodles were delicious along with the many choices of salads and desserts.
Another new adventure was the Marion Street United Methodist Church in Boone. This is a beautiful older church that sits in western Boone. They held a soup supper Sunday evening.
Boone is the county seat of Boone County, and in its early days was known for coal. It was platted in 1865 by John Insley Blair, a famous entrepreneur. The town was incorporated in 1866, when the Chicago and North Western Transport Company Railroad station was built there. In 1866 a town right west of Boone, called Boonesboro, was started, and in 1887, it was annexed with Boone.
Boone was the site of the first Casey’s General Store, which opened in 1968. Part of the 1996 movie “Twister” was filmed there. A number of years ago, I bought stock in Caseys. Its value has went up 15 times since I bought it. Someday ask me about my McLeod stock.
Boone also has a large First United Methodist Church located in the town. It makes me wonder if the Marion Street United Methodist Church is a remnant of the former Boonesboro. This is a large church also.
The Marion Street United Methodist Church held the soup supper in the basement, a large and beautiful area. There were four soups offered at this event. Dan tried each one. I did my part by sampling the chili, potato soup and another chili. They had delicious corn bread and homemade bread. I had my share of the homemade bread and also a choice dessert.
Another interesting feature in this beautiful old church was the several wooden dividers in the basement. At one time this must have been how they separated the Sunday School classes. I like old churches. They have a lot of character and show slices of another time.
Keep prayerful watch for more dinners to come!
