Stone soup feeds crowd

Barbara Lawlor

Nederland

It was kind of an experiment. The Nederland Food Pantry volunteers decided they needed to raise money but didn't want to go to the businesses, again, for donations. So, they ventured forth into the public domain, asking people to donate goods and services for a silent auction.

Then they asked those who wanted to come and buy the auction items to bring a can of food and donate some cash in exchange for dinners: homemade soup, salad, bread, brownie, and beverage.

Last Sunday's Stone Soup fundraising event was a success and proved to the food pantry volunteers that if they asked the community to help, help was provided.

As people entered and offered their donations, they were given a stone which they gave back when they lined up to get their soup. The Stone Soup concept came from an old folk tale in which hungry travelers, carrying a large empty cooking pot, asked the locals of a town they arrived in to give them food. The residents refused.

The travelers then filled the pot with water and dropped a large stone it before hanging it over a fire. A curious villager asked what they were doing and the travelers said they were making stone soup but it needed some carrots to improve the flavor. The residents donated some carrots. Another curious local was told that some seasoning would make the soup much better. More ingredients were added as people walked by and soon the pot contained delicious, nourishing soup that was enjoyed by many.

Local cooks Kim Culver, Ross Alper and Nick Stone provided the dinner for the food pantry event: Broccoli and Cheese Soup, Miso Vegetable Soup (vegetarian and gluten-free), and Chicken Gumbo served with rice and a huge mound of brownies.

While people ate and shopped, The Gael, consisting of Billy Ikler, Mary Joyce, Laura Fisher and Linda Gore soothed their souls and awakened their senses with Celtic tunes, creating a bright, happy atmosphere.

The experiment was a success and those who attended went home with full bellies and good-deal treasures donated by their friends and neighbors.

In the last year the food pantry has expanded their services to cover Jamestown, Allenspark, and residents in between. It has distributed 55,000 pounds of food to those in need. It assisted 2,708 people in the fight against hunger in our area and served 110 more people each month since the September flood.

If everyone gives a little…everyone can eat.