The Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative just finished a full year of organizing free community meals. When I started asking church leaders about doing this in 2015, a couple of ministers said I would never get this off the ground. When there is a will, there is a way.

In November 2015, I had a free community meal meeting and invited all the Whitehall-Coplay faith-based organizations and other groups. Many came to this meeting. None of the naysayers attended. I explained the program, and every one of the 2016 monthly meals were eagerly scheduled.

All the meals were supported mainly by the churches and their parishioners, hunger initiative fundraisers, Second Harvest and public donations. Commitment to Family and Community in Coplay was the only non-church participant, providing one meal. We are truly grateful that this group stepped up to offer a meal and a location in Coplay. St. Peter Catholic Church cannot host a meal at its church in Coplay but has helped Faith Lutheran with its meals and the Hunger Initiative with other programs.

These are the churches that participated in 2016: Egypt Community Church (one meal), Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church (two meals), First Presbyterian Church of Hokendauqua (one meal), Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church (one meal), St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church (two meals) and Whitehall Bible Fellowship Church (four meals).

Our first meal was Jan. 19, 2016, on a very cold and blustery day. We had no clue how many Whitehall and Coplay residents would come, so we capped the meals at 100. The first meal was a nice chicken dinner served at Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church on MacArthur Road. Thirteen guests braved the cold. All were grateful and really enjoyed the hot, cooked meal. We were thrilled that we had people come on that cold day.

The meals continued growing every month. Guests were telling their friends. We gave the Whitehall and Coplay food pantries fliers to give to their guests. We posted fliers around the area and ran ads in the Whitehall-Coplay Press.

In May, we served 60 meals.

The Whitehall Lions Club noticed what we were trying to do and asked how its members could help. I said signage would be wonderful. The Lions Club graciously provided 100 24-inch-by-18-inch color yard signs to be placed in Whitehall and Coplay and also provided a large sign to be moved every month to the host facility. These signs were distributed in Whitehall and Coplay before the June meal. Six signs were stolen in a five-day period. Because of these signs and the momentum of the growing knowledge of the meals, we served 85 meals at Whitehall Bible Fellowship Church, on Seventh Street in Hokendauqua, in June.

In September, there were 112 meals served. We were now over the 100-meal cap, but everyone was served at the meal. At the December meal, 143 meals were served. This is incredible! It was from the grace of God that there was extra food available.

We are not putting as many signs around since people do know about our meals now. We know there is a real need here, as you can see with the growing numbers. We have not turned anyone away but are concerned as to what to do as the numbers are still increasing.

Our attendance mainly has been those in need, including individuals, some families and seniors who like the fellowship atmosphere of being with other people. We know there are many families who should be attending, but we do not know how to reach them. We encourage you to tell people with children about us. We really would like to serve more children.

For 2017, we have the same churches and Commitment to Family and Community (CFC) that hosted the meals in 2016 but have added St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church, Holy Trinity Catholic Church and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. Some churches are helping other churches serve the meal. And some are actually the church site for the meal.

“The committee has been very pleased with the response to the community meals program, both in churches offering to host community meals as well as the number of guests that come to enjoy the meals,” said Shel Ehret, co-chair of the Free Community Meals Committee. “This program is growing and providing opportunities for churches and organizations to support the Whitehall-Coplay community.”

I have been asked by some parishioners why their churches are not represented at our meetings, at the meals and at other areas of hunger we are working with. I always tell the individual to ask their faith leader why they are not part of our group. The people asking these questions can be a representative for their church. We are all here to help the residents of Whitehall and Coplay.

We would like every faith-based congregation represented in our Hunger Initiative, along with people from all walks of life, even if they don’t attend a faith-based organization.

I want to thank Janice Stavrou, Judy Ehret and Shel Ehret - Free Community Meal Committee chairs - and all the many churches, CFC and volunteers who help with these monthly meals. This is a great accomplishment. I am a very proud of the work they and the rest of the Hunger Initiative do to strengthen our community.

Our next free community meal is Jan. 17 at Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, 3355 MacArthur Road. The meal time has changed from 4:30 to 7 p.m. to 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The Whitehall-Coplay School District has students that speak 50 different languages. Did you know that? I was surprised when I heard this last year from a school administrator at a Lions Club meeting. Therefore, there are many, many different ethnicities in Whitehall and Coplay.

The Hunger Initiative wants to have members at our monthly meetings representing all nationalities and religions from the Whitehall-Coplay communities. Our Hunger Initiative is made up of people interested in helping hungry people in Whitehall and Coplay. We have school officials and teachers, businesses, residents, clubs, associations, hospitals, food organizations and social service administrators, along with the faith-based community. And we need you!

Our Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative meetings are held 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month at Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, 3355 MacArthur Road. The next meeting is set for Jan. 24. We are working on many outreach programs, including a summer breakfast program to be held in Fullerton in June 2017. I would encourage anyone interested in helping us to please attend our meetings. If you are not available during the times of our meetings, e-mail me so I can add you as a contact on my master e-mail list. Contact me with any questions at 610-266-5241 or shari@sharinoctor.com.