Church Opens Doors For Christmas Dinner Central United Methodist Gives Food, Presents To Downtown’s ‘Family’ Of Homeless, Needy People

Fri., Dec. 26, 1997

By Robin Rivers robinr@spokesman.com

It was a Christmas family reunion of sorts Thursday at Central United Methodist Church.

The day came with turkey and trimmings, presents and games. But the “family” that gathered wasn’t your average crowd.

It was the family of homeless and needy people living in downtown Spokane. And the day’s joy was all the Christmas many of them would have.

More than 500 people packed the church halls at 518 W. Third on Christmas Day, turning a plain basement into a holiday festival.

The rooms were jammed with people eating Christmas dinner. No one left empty-handed as groceries, coats and presents were given out.

“It’s amazing,” said Craig Geis, youth pastor at the church.

The meal, put together by several area churches, was typical of what people found at free community dinners throughout the city for the holidays.

It also was a chance for folks to visit with old friends and meet new ones.

Tom Cawley wound up at the church after a friend stood him up.

“Someone just told me about this. So I got to have Christmas dinner,” he said while munching on roast beef and dill pickles. “I would have had to have sandwiches by myself.”

Fern Swecker came for the company.

“I can’t be with my family, and I wanted to meet some people,” she said.

Swecker did find a few friends. She also left with a bag full of doughnuts, toiletries and magazines.

Sven Pretorious had been planning his day at the church for a while.

“This is my first and last stop today,” said the elderly man who waited to eat his favorite: mincemeat pie. “This is definitely the highlight of my day.”

Pretorious knew most of the crowd. He’s a regular at the church’s weekday meals.

His familiarity with the surroundings made him all the more grateful.

“People like us owe Spokane a huge debt of gratitude,” Pretorious said while gifts were raffled off and children played basketball in the gymnasium. “The folks here do an absolutely marvelous job of taking care of people.

“My heart goes out to everyone.”

The dozens of volunteers from around Spokane expected nothing but smiling faces in return.

Don Vinzant spent 23 hours cooking roast beef, turkey and ham for the day. Coffee and smiles kept him going.

“We’re just here helping people who need help,” he said.

, DataTimes

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