On Friday, December 13, at 5:30, Golden’s Trinity Lutheran Church hosted their annual Christmas Dinner.
An invite-only event, the Church gathers around 30 people each year who they believe are in need of a good Christmas dinner and a little company during the holiday season.
“Most people are singles who don’t really have families around here, so it’s just something we like to do at Christmas time,” said Joan Stevaux, one of the members of the church and an organizer of the dinner. “The people all tend to know each other because they’ve met here at one point during the year. They’re regulars with our other services.”
With the guests all being familiar with each other, these dinners can often feel like a family affair. Many of them have experienced similar hardships and can relate to one another through their experiences.
“It’s like we’ve adopted these people. It’s nice to be able to share this time of the year with others,” said Stevaux. “It’s a good feeling to know that we have so much and that we can pass it on.”
At the dinner, guests are also presented with a gift bag of goodies. The contents of the bag tend to be universally needed objects, like floor mats and back scratchers.
According to Stevaux, they try and provide things that these people wouldn’t normally purchase for themselves. She says it’s always nice to get a little treat around Christmas.
“Warm socks and scarves and good boots in the wintertime are important, a lot of these things people wouldn’t prioritize to go and buy,” said Stevaux. “We try not to include food because they can get that all year round, but this year we were able to buy gift cards from IGA. They’re small amounts, but it’s enough to buy yourself a little treat you wouldn’t normally get.”
These dinners are a tradition that started nearly 20 years ago by accident. The first dinner was so well-received that they’ve continued to do them every year since.
“We thought oh well, we’ll see how this turns out,” said Stevaux. “Turns out, it has worked out very well, so we just keep doing them!”
Stevaux knows how hard this time of year can be on people and how important it is to share these moments together.
“This time of the year, people can feel so depressed about needing to do this, and needing to do that,” said Stevaux. “The only thing you need to do is share the hope that we get at Christmas time, so that’s what we need to do.”
With the success of this year’s dinner, it’s a tradition that looks to continue on for many years to come.
