Fish dinners involve work of many

By KATIE LEFEBVRE, Globe staff reporter
Feb. 28, 2008

For Catholics part of Lent is abstaining from meat on Fridays. Several parishes in the Diocese of Sioux City help enforce this by providing fish dinners for parishioners and the community.

The fish dinners may be prepared and served differently at each parish but the goal of bringing people together during Lent is the same.

St. Michael Parish

At St. Michael Parish in Sioux City fish dinners are served from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. the first six Fridays of Lent but not on Good Friday.

According Pam Mears, a parishioner at St. Michael's, the dinners have been held during Lent since after Vatican II. Before that, the dinners were held every Friday to help raise money to build the school.

The dinners are prepared by two circles each week. The first dinner is prepared by volunteers. There are some people who come to help every week. Between all the preparation and serving, Mears figures there are about 132 positions that people work throughout the day.

"It takes quite a community to come together to make this happen," said Mears. "It is handed down from generation to generation."

Preparation begins about 8 a.m. on Friday - tables get set up, cabbage is chopped for the coleslaw, lemons are cut, ketchup bottles are filled, carrot sticks are cut, buns are cut and packaged for carryouts, etc. Coleslaw and tartar sauce are made from scratch.

When that is done, the fish fryers come in to prepare and start cooking the fish. In the afternoon, the au gratin potatoes are also prepared.

The dinner is served buffet style with fish, salads, rolls, desserts and beverages. On average, they serve 850 people each week. Their biggest night ever was a few years ago with 1,035 people.

"It is a good fundraiser for the church. For myself, I enjoy coming every Friday for the socialization and fellowship," said Mears. "We always have a great salad bar and lots of great desserts - pies, cakes, cheesecakes. I think that is part of what keeps people coming. It is a good family outing."

Sts. Peter and Paul Parish

The Knights of Columbus at Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in West Bend prepare and serve the fish dinners that are held three Fridays during Lent. This year is the 19th year they have been having the dinners.

Bob Thilges, Grand Knight, pointed out that they average between 700 and 800 people at each dinner. On Wednesday, they set up tables. On Thursday all of the fish is thawed. The whole council helps with the dinners. The Knights have three committees and two help with each dinner so the committees help with two dinners each.

The dinners are served from 4:30 to 8 p.m. at the West Bend Golf and Country Club. They offer all you can eat fish, baked hash browns, coleslaw, corn, dinner rolls, ice cream sundae and beverage.

Once someone has gone through the line, they don't have to get back up to get more fish. Knights walk around and serve more fish as people want it.

Thilges said that the fish dinners are a fundraiser for the Knights.

Nativity Parish

This is the 22nd year that the Men's Club at Nativity Parish in Sioux City has held their "world renowned" fish dinners. On average they serve more than 520 people each week.

On Monday, Mel Wieseler, a member of the Men's Club, does an inventory of items and orders items needed for the next dinner. The items are delivered Wednesday afternoon. A group of men go in on Thursday night to cut the fish and prepare some of the salads. On Friday morning a group comes in to set up the tables and chairs and put the placemats, silverware and napkins at each place.

Preparation of the fish starts when the dinners start so that the attendees receive fresh fish.

The dinners are held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. in the Nativity Parish Center each Friday during Lent including Good Friday. They serve all you can eat baked and deep fried fish, fries, au gratin potatoes, macaroni and cheese, desserts, salads and drinks. The desserts are brought in by two circles each week.

Wieseler mentioned that it takes about 50 people to put the dinner on - fish fryers, servers, dish washers, coffee pourers, etc. To help avoid a fish smell there is a shack behind the school where the fryers are kept. Four men are stationed in the shack to fry the fish.

According to Larry Harrington, a member of the Men's Club, the dinner turns a 55 percent profit that goes to help different projects at the parish.

"We have the fish dinner for courtesy and socializing," said Harrington. "It is a nice meal."

The leftovers from each dinner are taken to the Carmelite monastery.

St. Malachy Parish

Fish dinners have been served at St. Malachy Parish in Madrid since Lent of 2002. The first year they served 88 people and profited $170. They are now serving an average of 150 people a week with the record being 238 people.

This year they are having more dinners than in the past. The dinners are held each Friday during Lent except Feb. 22. The preparation is a joint effort between the parish activities committee and the Knights of Columbus. Preparation begins about 2 p.m. and the dinner is served from 5 to 7 p.m.

"We use our own homemade batter (for the fish) - flour, pepper, lemon pepper and beer," said Father Brian Danner, pastor at St. Malachy.

The desserts are brought in by parishioners and everything else is made on site. They make fish, shrimp, macaroni and cheese, baked potatoes, green beans, corn and dinner rolls.

"They enjoy it. They enjoy not having to cook," said Father Danner. "It is a wonderful fundraiser for us as a parish. This year we are splitting the proceeds between the Knights of Columbus and the parish activities committee."

Sacred Heart Parish

The fish dinners at Sacred Heart Parish in Sioux City are prepared by the Knights of Columbus and their wives. The dinners have been held for several years and are served six Fridays during Lent. There is no dinner on Good Friday. On average the dinner serves more than 300 from 5 to 7 p.m.

As a Knight, Carl Ribando helps prepare and set up for the dinner each week. He pointed out that everything is made in the school kitchen. They serve baked and fried fish, shrimp, macaroni and cheese, tater tots, green beans, fresh rolls, pastries, coffee and lemonade.

They share the kitchen with the cooks that serve school lunch so the preparation begins about 1:30 p.m. on Friday. The pastries are baked on Thursday afternoons.

"We have a scholarship program for our Sacred Heart students and a lot of the money goes to that," said Ribando. "That is our main goal - for families that are a little stressed for tuition. It helps them out. It is a lot of work, but we enjoy it. It is something we do for the Lord."

There are several other fish dinners held throughout the diocese. Anyone interested in attending should check out their parish bulletin or the calendar of events in The Globe on page 15.