Lions’ seniors’ supper a roaring success

BY SARA KEDDY

Kings County Register “How many rolls do we put out?” asked a Lion. “There’s not enough to use 10, and there’s 38 baskets at a time,” responded Bob Harris, flipping through his notebook of details, names and schedules for the Berwick Lions complimentary seniors’ supper March 29.

Add in 200 pounds of roast beef, 200 lbs of potatoes, 165 lbs of carrots, 175 lbs of turnip, 20 two-kilogram bags of peas, 100 lbs of cabbage, 10 gallons of ice cream and 150 lbs of apples and you need a quartermaster who knows how to run a tight ship to pull off a project of this size. “We’ve talked about it for a long time - Aylesford Lions have been doing it,” said team leader Lion Al Howard. “We finally said, ‘Let’s do it’. “It’s all logistics - there weren’t as many at that time but, as it’s all come together, they’ve added up.”

The Lions canvassed community business and themselves to come up with 23 sponsors - everything from cash for rolls and veggies to donated ingredients. They also lined up Berwick Scouts and Girl Guides to join Lions on serving detail, and rounded up Lionettes and other friends to help in the kitchen. “It’s just a matter or making sure you’ve got enough people to get it going - and keep it going,” Harris said. “You call everyone three weeks out to line them up, the next week - ‘Still OK?’ and the day before: ‘Did you remember?’”

The club needed all hands on deck for what turned into a huge undertaking: free tickets to the meal were spread around the community for seniors - 480 altogether, divided into two settings, one at 4 p.m. and the next at 5:30 p.m.

Lions worked two solid days before the dinner setting up the hall and preparing the food, and spent the big day shuttling back and forth between the hall and nearby St. Anthony’s Catholic Church’s kitchens, where the second meal was to be cooked, then lugged up the road.

An hour before the first setting, bad news was piling up: someone’s mother-in-law had passed away, another’s mother was very ill and a Lion himself was admitted to hospital treatment. “Oh, he’s only a kid!,” Harris groaned with the last news. “We’re getting to be witching hour!”

When asked why the Lions themselves - most well over the age of 60 used to define “senior” - weren’t attending the meal, Howard said they’d eat afterwards - “if we’re not too tired!” “If we don’t cook, no one will eat!” Harris responded.