Soup Kitchen to host Community-Wide Thanksgiving Dinner

The Sneads Ferry Satellite Soup Kitchen will host a Community-Wide Thanksgiving Dinner at the Sneads Ferry Community Center. The soup kitchen is run by

the combined efforts of the Sneads Ferry Presbyterian Church Outreach Ministry, St. Phillips Episcopal Church and other area church and community volunteers.

The soup kitchen served its first meal back in March. It is designated a satellite of the Onslow County Ministries for insurance purposes mainly, said Howard Orr, an active volunteer and advocate for the soup kitchen. 

“We run this operation with volunteers from this area. Local businesses have been very generous and have supported us each and every week since we started in March,” Orr said.

The soup kitchen receives donations from Food Lion, New York Bagels and has had two very successful food drives run on its behalf by Coldwell Bankers Realty and the post office. Gulfstream Steel Supply of Holly Ridge offers a freezer and storage room for the donations.

Amy Cooke, owner of Subway on Hwy 210 in Sneads Ferry provides sandwich makings each week. 

“I am now in position to give back to this community. And I feel good about that,” she said.

Every week a volunteer makes at least three gallons of homemade soup from the donated food to serve along with a sandwich, drinks and dessert on Thursdays. 

“There isn’t any sort of qualification for someone to come here and eat with us,” explains Pat Schmauss the soup kitchen’s volunteer coordinator. “Everyone is welcome to join us for lunch.” 

The decision to hold a Community-Wide Thanksgiving Dinner was an easy one since it falls on Thursday. Volunteers will prepare traditional side dishes to go along with the turkeys offered by C.M. Mitchell Construction. The dinner will be plated and guests are welcome to take away meals as well.

Schmauss hopes that the Thanksgiving Dinner will also help get the word out about the soup kitchen. 

“It is a good way to get involved in the community we all live in, whether you come as a guest or to help serve your neighbor,” she said. “Because in Sneads Ferry, that is what we do; we look after each other.”

The Sneads Ferry Satellite Soup kitchen serves lunch each Thursday from 11:30 a.m. at the Sneads Ferry Community Building on Park Lane in Sneads Ferry.  The Community-Wide Thanksgiving Dinner will be Thursday, November 26 (Thanksgiving Day) beginning at 11:30 a.m. For more information contact Pat Schmauss, Volunteer Coordinator at 910-327-3557, Howard Orr at 910-329-7641 or Bibbie Ashby at 327-2169.