Two Burnet churches ‘love thy neighbor’ with hot meals most Thursdays—no questions asked
Deana Geuther of Episcopal Church of the Epiphany serves food at a weekly community dinner at Vanderveer Street Church of Christ. Held from 4-5:30 p.m. every Thursday, the program provides a hot meal for anyone who shows up to the church, 102 S. Vanderveer St. in Burnet—no questions asked. Photo by Daniel Clifton
On a recent Thursday, a man bounced through the door of Vanderveer Street Church of Christ in Burnet with a laugh and a smile, offering hugs and handshakes to the volunteers lined up to serve free, hot meals to anyone who entered. He spoke Spanish, which none of the volunteers really understood, but they got the message: joy and gratitude for the food and fellowship.
“That’s one of the reasons we do this,” said Becky Carlberg, who leads Episcopal Church of the Epiphany’s volunteer cooking team.
Episcopal Church of the Epiphany members take care of the meals on the first and third Thursdays of the month from 4-5:30 p.m., while Vanderveer Street Church of Christ volunteers are on duty the second and fourth Thursdays at the same time. The program serves between 60 and 80 people each week, except on the occasional fifth Thursday, at the Church of Christ, 102 S. Vandeveer St.
The Rev. Tim Denton of the Church of Christ and Joann and Ben Thomas of the Episcopal church began the community dinners in 2009. The Burnet Ministerial Alliance initially helped spearhead the effort, but it has since become a mission of the two churches.
Carlberg joined the effort in 2016 when a friend invited her to help in the kitchen. She became a regular volunteer even though she’s not a member of either church. She saw how a simple meal lifted people’s moods or just gave them a break. It was sort of the same for her, as a volunteer.
“It’s just a good feeling you get when you leave,” Carlberg said. “You know, it’s something that replenishes me. It’s something that makes me feel good.”
Volunteers Sandy and Rufus Arrington began pitching in not too long after they moved to the community in 2000 and became members of the Episcopal church.
“(Joann Thomas) just believed in (the program) so much,” Sandy Arrington said. “And I thought that would be something good to do as well.”
Rufus Arrington led the Episcopal church effort for a number of years but has sinced handed over the reins to Carlberg. The Arringtons still help every other week.
Throughout most of the program’s history, people would sit down to eat and enjoy the food and fellowship.
“It was a social thing,” Carlberg said.
However, since the pandemic, when people could not eat together, the dinners have become mostly takeout.
Still, people depend on the Thursday dinners.
“It’s one meal a week, but I think it helps a lot,” Carlberg said. “It’s one day you don’t have to go home and cook a meal. Maybe you work all day. Maybe you have kids. Or, maybe you don’t have the means to cook a meal for yourself. So you can come here and get a good hearty meal.”
Sandy Arrington said five to six group homes pick up dinners each week.
“It’s a special thing for the folks who live there, but it’s also a special thing for the caregivers because they have a little break,” she said.
“The work they do provides a great service,” husband Rufus added. “They need a little slack, too.”
Though the two Burnet churches do the bulk of the cooking and serving, as well as the funding, they do get outside support. Gude’s Bakery and the Burnet H-E-B donate baked goods, breads, and tortillas. Members of First Methodist of Burnet often bake desserts. Other people donate money.
In the end, it comes down to food, for the body and the soul. The community dinners are served to anyone who walks through the door—no paperwork and no requirements, Sandy Arrington said.
“I remember Joann saying: ‘No questions asked. Just come, eat, and enjoy,’” she added.
For more information on the weekly community dinners, whether volunteering, donating, or eating, call Vanderveer Street Church of Christ at 512-756-2253 or Episcopal Church of the Epiphany at 512-756-2334.