Community dinner at Cashmere church fosters unity and connection

CASHMERE - Every Thursday, a group of Cashmere residents come together to share a meal in the Cashmere Community Church gym. At first glance, it looks like just that, just a meal. But in reality, it is so much more.

Sure, good food is shared, but the real beauty of the gathering is in the community it builds. 

"The real treasure is the coming together of community," Cashmere resident June Darling said. "I now know the names of most everyone. They have begun to leave their name tags on the wall and pick them up again each Thursday. I have learned the names of several if not all of our homeless folks and see them as human beings."

Each Thursday, a different group volunteers their time to prep, cook, serve, and clean up. It is not a small effort to feed so many people. There are groups from different area churches, civic groups, businesses, and even just groups of friends or neighbors who volunteer to keep the tradition going. 

The schedule is worked so that each group cooks about every other month, Cashmere Community Church Pastor Lilia Felicitas-Malana said.

The meals were started more than a decade ago by three women, Georgia Rich, Donna Winn, and Diane Parker, but stopped during the pandemic. 

Felicitas-Malana wanted to bring the meals back, but the church did not have enough members to do it every week. They planned to make the meals happen once a month. Then Cathryn Finlayson stepped in and began reaching out to other churches and groups. Her help has been instrumental in making the meals happen again.

The community saw value in the gatherings and stepped in to keep them going.

Felicitas-Malana has observed that people are not just coming for the food, though the food is good, but they are sitting down at the tables together and talking and sharing their lives, she said.

Felicitas-Malana said that, pre-pandemic time, she would remember the faces of people who came to the meal, but she didn't know their names. June and her husband, John Darling, came up with the idea of using name tags

"And I tell you what, it's the most beautiful thing that had happened here at the dinner because now we greet each other by name," Felicitas-Malana said. "We just don't say hi, hello, thank you for coming. We now can say hi whatever the name is, you know Steve or Mary or Craig or you know, and even the little ones."

Felicitas-Malana feels that by knowing names, people are able to build more intimate relationships.

"Because of that, some barriers are kind of broken down," she said. "Because when you don't know the name of the person you're talking to, even if you know the face, the sharing of lives rarely happens, or if it happens, it's just the superficial part of living that is being shared. But now that people know each other, they can share even some personal, very personal, things that are going on in their lives."

Leavenworth Chef and Cashmere resident Ben Herreid volunteers his time to cook for the meal. Like Felicitas-Malana and Darling, he appreciates the community that is found in gathering for the meals.

When Herreid first moved to Cashmere, he was looking for a way to be part of the community, so volunteering to cook was an easy decision, he said.

In this post-pandemic world we have come to appreciate being able to be together.

"I think we really need those community events where people can see each other and get to know each other and, you know, support each other, and people don't feel so isolated," he said.  

"You know, if you look at the stats right now, I mean, here's the Surgeon General saying loneliness is more of an issue, and it's a worse risk than smoking 15 cigarettes a day," Darling said.

Darling has enjoyed being a part of and watching bonds and the sense of community build and strengthen through the gatherings.

At times, there have been as many as 200 people at the meal, though Darling estimates that the usual amount is around 100. Anniversaries and birthdays have been celebrated. Parents feel safe enough to relax and let their kids run around. Homeless people are treated with dignity. 

"You'd never see anywhere around Cashmere a more diverse group of people having a good time eating together...in a gym," Darling said.

For Darling, the story is about connecting community during a challenging and often divisive time.

"Our little rural communities are the backbone of this country," Darling said. "And we don't get enough credit for what these little communities mean to our country. And especially now when so much of our country is divided. How much our local communities can bring to strengthen the fact that 'I got your back and whatever is going on out there, I got your back,'" she said.

The dinners start at 5 p.m. every Thursday at the Cashmere Community Church, but the doors open at 4:30, so people can come in, get out of the cold, and spend some time talking to each other.

It is a free community dinner, though donations are accepted to help with the cost of ingredients. And while the donations are appreciated, Felicitas-Malana wants people to know that that should not be a barrier to keep someone from coming.

"And another thing, for some reason, they and I, when I say they, you know, the community, some community members thought that the dinner is for the homeless people," she said. "And I would say yes, we love to see those who are experiencing homelessness, to at least have one meal in a week that they can come in, you know, sit down, be comfortable and have a meal."

"But it's not only for the homeless people," she said. "Again, we tried to underscore it's for the community and anyone in the community can come, anybody in the community can come. We will be happy to welcome everyone."

Quinn Propst: 509-731-3590 or quinn@ward.media