Churches serve Thanksgiving dinner to seniors
By Mary Shane Contributing Writer

MARY SHANE (l to r) Bob Sylvester and Jim Nidzolkowski

Westborough - First United Methodist Church (FUMC) was the coordinating church for the 38th annual Westborough Interfaith Clergy Senior Citizen's Thanksgiving Dinner. The dinner was held at the Knights of Columbus Hall Nov. 22. In total, 130 were fed at the hall and 61 meals were delivered to seniors' homes.

FUMC member Steve Almy was the publicity coordinator for the event.

"This year it was FUMC's turn [to coordinate]," Almy said. "The host church is responsible for getting the main coordinators. The main coordinators get the remaining volunteers to help out with the rest. The other volunteers are from across the community."

According to Almy, "[This event] shows the connectedness of the Westborough community."

Jim Nidzolkowski was the overall coordinator for this year's dinner and Jill Pendleton of FUMC was the delivery coordinator. There were 12 other coordinators and more than 100 volunteers.

"[The volunteers] just made this a truly remarkable event," FUMC Pastor John Taylor said. "What a wonderful tradition for 38 years."

Bob Sylvester was head chef for the event.

"The church community really gets involved. It's all volunteers. It's big. It's amazing," Sylvester said. "It's the best day of the year for me. I meet all the clergy. I've had [the same] people in the kitchen 10, 20 years.

"[Volunteers] go into the kitchen, pick up the food, sit with the seniors, get their desserts and clear the table," Sylvester added.

Other volunteers included Kevin Conly, manager of the kitchen, and Peter DuBois, who helped make the stuffing and fill the birds.

"He's [DuBois has] been doing that for 25 to 30 years," Sylvester said.

Westborough Girl Scouts decorated placemats and set up the tables. Disc jockey Jimmy O'Neil played tunes from the 1930s, '40s and '50s.

This was the 10th year volunteering for Judy Gitkind and her children, Claire, Ben and Matt, who packed boxes for the drivers. High school juniors Jason Emery of St. Johns and Tony Kissell of Westborough High washed dishes from the early morning until the dinner was over.

Dorothy Orrizzi worked in the kitchen and Kris MacKenzie delivered meals.

"I've been doing this for 20 years," Orrizzi said. "I come early and stay until the last dish is done. The best part of this is being with people, to see their happiness; they're not alone. I have lots of friends here. I see the same faces every year. I don't know all their names, the dedicated ones, but I see them every year."

"I've been delivering meals for over 10 years," MacKenzie said. "It's the most rewarding thing

" you'll ever do. This town is so full of opportunities."

Sisters Alice and Rhoda Lehman have attended the annual dinner for 14 years.

"Everything here is so nice," Alice said. "The atmosphere, the food is excellent."

Taylor described the dinner as a community outreach event.

"Every church in town is involved. It's a community tradition. It's a spiritual thing. It brings people together on Thanksgiving, so that no one will be alone," he said. "People need to know they're loved."