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 Community Unity, a local initiative to help families in need, is currently entering its fifth year of operation. Co-organizer Suzanne Taylor, left, works with volunteers at Trinity United Methodist Church to prepare food for Supper’s On Us, the group’s weekly meal.
DELPHOS — Four years ago after Canal Days, a group was formed to help provide food and school supplies for local families in need. Every Thursday, Community Unity holds a free public meal at Trinity United Methodist Church.
“The meal is free but we set out a donation jar,” Co-organizer Suzanne Taylor said. “A lot of area organizations and businesses have donated food for the meals. Reser’s has been really generous. People give leftovers from weddings and funerals and sometimes we’ll go out and buy food. It comes to us from a lot of different places so we try to keep the menu flexible to incorporate what we have.”
The number of people who show up for the meal can range from the low 80s in the summer to between 100-125 throughout the year. Because the group is non-profit, volunteers are needed to keep the operation running smoothly.
“We do most of the cooking and then we just need people to show up and help serve the food,” Taylor said. “We have a lot of different groups in here helping out, some from church-related organizations and sometimes they’re from businesses. Sometimes they give cash donations too. A large part of our success in getting volunteers can be attributed to Jim Wilcox, who’s been involved since the beginning. His network of contacts has been instrumental in recruiting groups to help out.”
Taylor says the group is thankful to have a set location for the weekly supper.
“We just want to thank Trinity United Methodist for the use of the facility,” she said. “They’ve been very generous in allowing us to hold it here.”
Community Unity also collects donated school supplies and hands them out every year with School Supplies On Us and doles out free food to local families during Free Food On Us, the next of which is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 23 at the Delphos Eagles.
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