And Jesus said, “Whatsoever you do for these, you do so for me."  At the Saturday Lunch Program at First Congregational Church of LaGrange, "anyone who is hungry for food is welcome.” 

Each Saturday from early October till late April, 20-30 volunteers from everywhere in the community come together to cook and serve a nutritious meal to those in need.  In its 7^th year, the program also serves a large portion of hospitality and caring to as many as 56 grateful guests. “We don’t serve food… we serve people” states Bill Bright (center of picture). 

Bill Bright (a member of St. John of the Cross) and Bart McCartin, (a member of St. Isaac’s of Hinsdale) are part of the glue that hold this program together. Among the core group of volunteers from First Congregational are LuAnn and Scott Hall, Ryan Bednar, the Cortez family, Marie Roche, and Sandy McLaughlin.  However, many others regularly give of their time to help.

Bart McCartin (pictured to the left) is a true cordon bleu chef, trained in both Paris and Ontario.  Now retired, Bart prepares homemade soups for three programs each week, and acts as head chef of the program.  Bill serves as coordinator and fund raiser, while Bart is its master chef. 

Their stories are intertwined by the lunch program that brought them together in this mission…

"I do this because God asked me to” says Bill.  One day Bill learned of an individual who was having difficulties, and he went to bat to help him.  As time passed, this individual, who unbeknownst to Bill was a regular of the then fledging Saturday Lunch Program came upon tickets to a Cubs game.  He asked Bill to accompany him, and he also asked Fred Gonzalez of First Congregational as well.  At the game Fred told Bill of the need for the Saturday Lunch program at his church in the form of money, coordination, and volunteers.  Bill knew he was being called.

A few days later Bill was driving Bart to the Saturday Lunch Program. Bart did not know where we were going! When I told him, he then shared the fact that his spiritual advisor suggested to Bart that he should use his culinary training to feed the less fortunate rather than Princess', presidents and others. We both knew that that moment and that realization were due to the Holy Spirit. There have been many other blessed during the last three years at the Saturday Lunch Program.

The volunteers buy the food, prepare and serve it, and perform  mise en place (French for putting in place – in other words cleaning up.)  95% of the menu is cooked on site in the First Congregational Church’s ample kitchen.  The volunteers also sit with the guests, doing something perhaps more important than serving the meals… spending time on a one-to-one basis with their guests, feeding perhaps their souls as well as their bodies.

On any given Saturday First Congregation members might be seen in action offering other one-to-one services as well.  Many other families make it their weekly tradition to give what they can.

On every second Saturday, the guests have free access to legal counsel as well, on matters ranging from wills to leases and divorce. These attorneys, such as First Congregational Church’s own David Bryant, are residents of the LaGrange area who are members of the Chicago Volunteer Legal Services, located at 100 N. LaSalle Street (http://www.cvls.org).  This group, which was formed in the 1960s, volunteers their services at no charge all over the city.  Their members cover many different areas of law and come from many different backgrounds.  The common thread is the desire to serve the needs of those in shelters and other programs in need.  (For more information you may contact them at 312.332.1624.)

Some other notable volunteers have been Tom Fitzgerald (Supreme Court justice); Jim Peterik, lead singer of rock group The Ides of March; and 16 girl scouts who came together to entertain the guests with their rendition of “Nifty Fifty” (a song about the 50 states of the Union.)

Program funding comes from many places.  Volunteers often buy and prepare the meals.  Private donations come in from all over, as do corporate donations (such as that from our neighbors at Fuller’s Car Wash.) And some of the program’s needs are underwritten by First Congregational Church itself.

If you have any questions about our Saturday Lunch Program, please contact  our church office (708) 352-0800, or Bill Bright (billybright@hotmail.com).