St. Elizabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church, 618 Fullerton Ave., Whitehall, held another successful spaghetti dinner Jan. 24 in its social hall. Diners chose the time slots in which they wished to be served — 4 p.m., 5:30 p.m. or 7:30 p.m.

The dinner proceeds benefit St. Elizabeth Regional School, which serves children from several parishes in the Lehigh Valley. School Principal Kim Kocher, of Breinigsville, noted they expected to serve about 275 spaghetti dinners overall.

The patron saint of the parish is St. Elizabeth of Hungary. She was born July 7, 1207, and died Nov. 17, 1231, at the age of 24. She was canonized as a saint May 27, 1235, by Pope Gregory IX. St. Elizabeth is considered a symbol of Christian charity, as she dedicated most of her young life to helping and caring for the poor and sick.

The spaghetti dinner was well-attended, with patrons seeking to assist the parochial school, dine on a quality spaghetti and meatball dinner and socialize with family and friends. It was a BYOB event that had some patrons bringing their favorite wine to enjoy with their meal.

Because of the large attendance, the kitchen staff was laser-focused and up-tempo in completing their food preparation duties. Kitchen leader Mike Edelman and daughter Jenna labored with as many as eight other kitchen volunteers to make the near-300 dinners spanning the three-hour dinner service. Add in cleanup time, and it was a Herculean effort by the volunteers.

Susan Jasorka, of Breinigsville, staffed the ticket table near the front door along with Kocher. Their welcoming smiles were appreciated by those in attendance, setting the stage for a positive experience.

A number of the volunteers at the dinner were students at the school. The more than 15 student volunteers were cheerful as they served dinners to hungry patrons. They seemed to have fun as they discharged their duties helping people.

Diners Steve Foulke, Rich Ganser, Grace Ganser and Jack Kern are a multi-generation family that came to support the school. Grace is a sixth-grader at St. Elizabeth.

Other attendees relaxed at the event, enjoying their spaghetti dinner as they soaked up the ambience of a large gathering and good conversation.