TCC gives back to UGRM

Those working to give back to the community on Christmas this year received extra help, but still are in need of volunteers to make the efforts possible.

The United Gospel Rescue Mission is preparing its annual Christmas dinner, served to those in the community who are in need of a holiday meal. Preparations at the Mission started last week with 16 turkeys, but the students of the Poplar Bluff Technical Career Center’s Culinary Arts program started even earlier.

The students made around 14,000 dinner rolls to be part of the meal, which were delivered to the Mission last week.

The students also helped cook and serve the Mission’s annual Thanksgiving meal last month, in what leadership on both sides hope will be the beginning of a budding partnership.

This has been in discussion for years, according to instructor Brandon Moon, but previous academic calendars didn’t lend themselves to it.

After the school start date was pushed back this year, however, the students were in class in the days leading up to both holidays.

The students also enjoyed the experience volunteering with the Mission.

Desiree Mortan, who is in her second year with the culinary arts program, said it was rewarding to be able to help those less fortunate on these special days.

“It was a good experience, being able to help people and see people who came in and out who really needed the help,” she said. “People with kids, older people, people you wouldn’t really think would actually need your help.”

Pastor Greg Kirk, executive director of the Mission, said he appreciated the students’ help. He’s known Moon for years, he explained, and recognizes what the Career Center offers through it’s culinary program.

“I’d like to see some of our men get training with them,” he said.

Food services, especially fast food, aren’t as worried about a potential employee’s past legal issues, which makes it a good industry for those with criminal backgrounds to get into to help turn their lives around.

“If you can flip an egg, they don’t care as much about a past felony,” Kirk said. “If you can fry an egg, they’ll give you a chance to fry an egg.”

The Christmas meal includes more than just the dinner rolls and turkey.

Kirk said volunteers are also making ham, potatoes, dressing, corn, green beans and dessert for those who both come to eat at the Mission and to deliver to those who either aren’t able to or don’t feel safe attending in person.

The delivery, he added, is the area where he’s worried there won’t be enough volunteers.

For Thanksgiving, they delivered 000 meals to people and families around Butler County.

While the Christmas meal typically is smaller than Thanksgiving, Kirk said he isn’t sure whether that will be true this year.

With the COVID-19 pandemic still in people’s minds, he expects fewer people will travel for the holiday and thus, more will need help when it comes to their Christmas meal.

“It’s hard to say,” he said. “We did 2,000 for Thanksgiving ... but I’m really wondering if, with COVID, we won’t do more for Christmas, or at least that much. (Historically) if we did 1,300 for Thanksgiving, we’d do about 1,100-1,200 for Christmas. So, I’m thinking that’s probably about it. If we did 2,000 for Thanksgiving, that means we’ll probably do 1,600-1,700 Christmas, which is still a lot.”

The Mission will be open Christmas day for people to eat there, following CDC social distancing recommendations. People will come into the building and sit in a group of four at one table, he said. When those four are done, they will be escorted out of the building and the table and chairs will be sanitized before four more are seated.

Kirk said he worked with the Butler County Health Department to ensure they meet the CDC recommended guidelines.

This is the same plan the Mission implemented for its Thanksgiving meal last month, and Kirk said the meal has not been named in contact tracing for any COVID-19 cases.

Volunteers and those receiving a meal are strongly encouraged, but not required, to wear a mask.

However, those who don’t feel safe eating at the Mission can still receive a meal if they call 573-785-4683 or 573-785-3013 on Christmas day.

Kirk said he encourages people to call ahead, but will try to accommodate those who call Christmas day.

For those who call, a meal will be delivered by volunteer to their home.

Kirk said he’s concerned they won’t have enough people to volunteer to drive meals Christmas since that was also a concern for the Thanksgiving meal.

Between meal deliveries and taking longer to feed people in person with social distancing guidelines, the Thanksgiving meal lasted several hours longer than normal.

“On Thanksgiving, normally we’re done by 1:30 p.m., but we were here until 3 p.m. that day because it took so long to feed everybody,” Kirk said. “But that’s OK. That’s the nature of the beast.”

Those interested in volunteering don’t need to call ahead, he said.

People who want to help prepare the meal are encouraged to come to the Mission at 8 a.m. Christmas, by 9:30 to help serve and 10:30 to help deliver.

“If you want to help clean up, show up whenever you want,” Kirk said.

Drivers can pull up to the side of the Mission and say how many meals they can deliver.

Kirk said he writes down the address of the home on an index card and gets help from the Poplar Bluff Fire Department to organize them into groups in the same general area.

This means the drivers won’t receive a delivery to make in the northside of Poplar Bluff and the southside.

“If you can take, let’s just say three different families, they’ll all be in the same area,” Kirk said. “Could be in the same apartment complex, could be the same street or an adjoining street ... They’ll give you the card, they’ll give you the food and they’ll send you out the door. We have everything prepackaged, everything will be ready to go. All they have to do is come and take it to the house, knock on the door and say ‘here’s your Christmas meal.’ Then if they want to, they can come back, get in line and do it again or they can go home.”