Free Christmas dinner in Gilford serves ham, with side of fellowship

For any number of reasons, not everybody has someone to spend the holidays with. A pair of local churches and the Laconia Rod & Gun Club have joined forces this year to provide a Christmas dinner for members of the public to enjoy a hot meal with friends both new and old, completely free of charge.

The annual Christmas dinner will take place on Thursday, Dec. 25, at First United Methodist Church on Wesley Way in Gilford, complete with great food, live music, and plenty of holiday cheer. The church will be spruced up with a decorated tree and poinsettias, and will provide a welcoming holiday environment to celebrate the holiday.

“The whole purpose of this dinner is to provide a place to go on Christmas Day,” said Carol Michael, a member of the First United Methodist Church who has organized the event for the past eight years. “This isn’t a takeout dinner. It’s so people aren’t alone on Christmas.”

It will all start with about a half-hour of mingling, music and munching on hors d'oeuvres, provided by United Baptist Church of Lakeport. This will include crackers and cheese, food platters, veggie platters, chips and punch. This is the first year appetizers have been provided by United Baptist Church, but they have long had volunteers coming to help.

“We want to just get their appetite going a little bit, but not a lot, because the ham dinner is wonderful,” said Betty Hackett, a volunteer for the dinner and secretary at United Baptist Church. “People will be singing Christmas carols. It is a fun time for everyone.”

Hackett said she and her husband, Wayne, decided years ago that with their kids out of the house, and many relatives gone, they wanted to volunteer. They have enjoyed it so much, that this year they wanted to do their part by providing snacks before the dinner, as well as some entertainment.

Hackett said Wayne is a “barbershopper,” and will once again be singing at the event. This year he will be accompanied by Emily Haggerty, the organist at United Baptist, who will play holiday classics on the in-house piano.

Volunteering is something that comes second nature to the Hacketts. Betty has been a member of the Gilmanton Zoning Board for about 30 years, and for the past four decades, has volunteered with the Special Olympics. She said it is a wonderful feeling to be able to give back to the community, especially around the holidays.

“We were not put on this Earth just to occupy space,” Betty said. “You are supposed to be helping. This is something my husband and I have always said since we got together.”

After about 30 minutes of getting into the holiday spirit, the crowd will move into the dining area for a full ham dinner. The meal will include potatoes, candied carrots, green bean casserole, rolls and homemade desserts, all prepared by Laconia Rod & Gun Club member Harry Bean and a team of fellow volunteers.

Ron Judd, club treasurer, said his group has been involved for nearly a decade. The club pays for food that has often served more than 100 people. Bean and several others will go to First United Methodist around 11:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve, cook all night, and once they are wrapped up, the second round of Rod & Gun Club members will come to help in the kitchen.

Bean, a state representative, is chair of the county delegation, made up of all Belknap's representatives to the Statehouse.

“We set up an assembly line in the kitchen so we can pump out the food to the servers that the church has,” Judd said, adding they will stick around to make sure the kitchen is all cleaned up.

Judd said the group of volunteers dedicate their time on Christmas Day to help out, taking the preceding days to spend time with families and friends for the holiday. He recognizes the importance of giving people a place to celebrate together.

“It is amazing how many people don’t have family or a place to go,” Judd said. “To see the joy on these people’s faces is the whole reason we do this.”

Mostly adults come to the dinner, with Michael saying some make group reservations for five or six people. Others may have lost a spouse, or would be otherwise alone on Christmas because they don’t have family nearby, or at all, so it is a place where they can come together to mingle and eat.

“It’s great that people can come in early, listen to the Christmas music, and meet one another, and then go down to the fellowship hall for a plated dinner,” Michael said.

Michael said that she isn’t a fan of the commercialism of Christmas, and she really enjoys being at the church with others to celebrate together.

“It is such a happy event, and the volunteers are just as happy to be there,” Michael said. "I love the whole social aspect. It’s a fun couple of hours.”

Michael has seen repeat patrons come over the years, but she admits the number of people served has diminished. They are planning for about 100 to 120 people, but in the past, there were some years where 150 people spent the holiday together at the church. Last year, about 80 people came to dinner.

Michael said this is where her job comes in, as there are countless hours of planning and getting the word out about the dinner by whipping up press releases, and using posters and social media.

A headcount is needed before the dinner to ensure there will be enough food. The deadline to register is Thursday, Dec. 18, but Michael said people can contact the church by the end of the weekend to let them know if they are coming.

To make reservations, call the First United Methodist Church at 603-524-3289, and leave a message with your name and number of people coming with your group.

The doors open at 12:30 p.m. for a half-hour of hors d’oeuvres before dinner at 1 p.m. The First United Methodist Church is located at 18 Wesley Way, off Route 11A, in Gilford.