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Good tidings: Hundreds attend annual Christmas dinner — for free

By Staff | Dec 31, 2014

MEL TOADVINE Volunteers hand out dinners at the end of the serving line.

Members of the Rotary Club of Lehigh Acres said 550 meals were served on Christmas day to local residents. Mike Buff, chairman of the Thanksgiving and Christmas Day dinners said the dinner, now held for several years. began at 11 a.m. and ended at 2 p.m.

“By that time we had run out and some 550 people came and had a nice Christmas Day dinner, with turkey and ham and all the trimmings. The dinner like all the others over the years was held at St. Raphael’s Church Parish Hall and Buff and Jack Vealey, co-chairman, and other Rotarians said they couldn’t say thanks enough to the church for giving the use of the dining room and kitchen to the Rotary.

Lines began forming must before 11 a.m. and one of the servers said they had served 70 plus people in the first 30 minutes.

Rotary Members counted each person as they came into the door. The dinner was free as all the dinners have been by the Rotary, but some came and dropped money into a wishing well.

Buff said they appreciated that money and it would go toward next year’s Thanksgiving Dinner. This past thanksgiving a record number of people turned out with the total reaching 650 meals. On Christmas Day, about 100 less people came to the dinner.

Mike Buff

That’s not unusual because people often are invited to friend’s homes or have relatives from up north come down and prepare a dinner for a family affair.

Mike Buff said the Rotarians could not have done these dinners had it not been for the community volunteers – adults and teens – who pitch in and help.

Teenagers kept serving dessert during the three hours while others cleaned up the tables as diners left and others came to sit at the same tables.

One volunteer was missing this year from both the Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinners.

Everyone who attended the dinners over the years would remember an elderly man who guided people to the serving line.

MEL TOADVINE Friends at Lehigh Rotary Christmas Dinner are from left to right, Tabatha Adams, Renee Kacjacobik and Cassandra Bartos, all of Lehigh. Kacjacobik said the dinner was “a blessing” for Lehigh Acres.

A good friend said he was Casper (Mike) Miceli.

“He and his wife were good friends of ours,” said Ruth Battistoni. “They were volunteers anywhere they were needed.

“Mike, and that’s what most people called him was so proud to help at the Rotary dinners. He was 97 and passed away in early November. I remember that before he died, he had asked for the badge that he wore whenever volunteered at the holiday dinners. The badge denoted that he was a traffic controller, she said.

“I found it and pinned it on his chest; he was so happy and had looked forward in volunteering again this past Thanksgiving. Before she passed away, his wife was the same way, they both enjoyed helping others and volunteers right up until their deaths. They both were just wonderful people.”

Many in the community don’t realize the time it takes to prepare a dinner for so many people.

MEL TOADVINE Having Christmas dinner is a group of visitors. By 2 p.m., some 550 meals had been handed out by volunteers and the Rotary Club.

The Rotary Club has only 28 members and most of them did something to help. But Buff emphasized that without community volunteers, “we could have made this thing fly.”

Buff said four to six volunteers come in on Christmas Eve early in the morning and start cooking turkeys and hams. Then later another crew comes in and they cut the meat and refrigerate it. Then others come in to prepare mashed potatoes, and gravy and all the other things that went with the dinner.

“It’s like a team and it works,” Buff said.

“Tell everyone that we’re going to do this again next years, both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Everyone who attended had a good time and the Rotary and the many volunteers who helped out also enjoyed being there,” Buff said.

Many of those who attended the dinner noticed that the Nativity scene at the entrance to the parish hall had been plagued by a thief who had stolen he baby Jesus from his manger.

Buff said he had noticed that it was gone earlier in the week, but that didn’t stop the merriment of the dinner and those who came. He said the number of people who came to eat was just about the same as last year.

Good tidings: Hundreds attend annual Christmas dinner — for free

By Staff | Dec 31, 2014

MEL TOADVINE Volunteers hand out dinners at the end of the serving line.

Members of the Rotary Club of Lehigh Acres said 550 meals were served on Christmas day to local residents. Mike Buff, chairman of the Thanksgiving and Christmas Day dinners said the dinner, now held for several years. began at 11 a.m. and ended at 2 p.m.

“By that time we had run out and some 550 people came and had a nice Christmas Day dinner, with turkey and ham and all the trimmings. The dinner like all the others over the years was held at St. Raphael’s Church Parish Hall and Buff and Jack Vealey, co-chairman, and other Rotarians said they couldn’t say thanks enough to the church for giving the use of the dining room and kitchen to the Rotary.

Lines began forming must before 11 a.m. and one of the servers said they had served 70 plus people in the first 30 minutes.

Rotary Members counted each person as they came into the door. The dinner was free as all the dinners have been by the Rotary, but some came and dropped money into a wishing well.

Buff said they appreciated that money and it would go toward next year’s Thanksgiving Dinner. This past thanksgiving a record number of people turned out with the total reaching 650 meals. On Christmas Day, about 100 less people came to the dinner.

Mike Buff

That’s not unusual because people often are invited to friend’s homes or have relatives from up north come down and prepare a dinner for a family affair.

Mike Buff said the Rotarians could not have done these dinners had it not been for the community volunteers – adults and teens – who pitch in and help.

Teenagers kept serving dessert during the three hours while others cleaned up the tables as diners left and others came to sit at the same tables.

One volunteer was missing this year from both the Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinners.

Everyone who attended the dinners over the years would remember an elderly man who guided people to the serving line.

MEL TOADVINE Friends at Lehigh Rotary Christmas Dinner are from left to right, Tabatha Adams, Renee Kacjacobik and Cassandra Bartos, all of Lehigh. Kacjacobik said the dinner was “a blessing” for Lehigh Acres.

A good friend said he was Casper (Mike) Miceli.

“He and his wife were good friends of ours,” said Ruth Battistoni. “They were volunteers anywhere they were needed.

“Mike, and that’s what most people called him was so proud to help at the Rotary dinners. He was 97 and passed away in early November. I remember that before he died, he had asked for the badge that he wore whenever volunteered at the holiday dinners. The badge denoted that he was a traffic controller, she said.

“I found it and pinned it on his chest; he was so happy and had looked forward in volunteering again this past Thanksgiving. Before she passed away, his wife was the same way, they both enjoyed helping others and volunteers right up until their deaths. They both were just wonderful people.”

Many in the community don’t realize the time it takes to prepare a dinner for so many people.

MEL TOADVINE Having Christmas dinner is a group of visitors. By 2 p.m., some 550 meals had been handed out by volunteers and the Rotary Club.

The Rotary Club has only 28 members and most of them did something to help. But Buff emphasized that without community volunteers, “we could have made this thing fly.”

Buff said four to six volunteers come in on Christmas Eve early in the morning and start cooking turkeys and hams. Then later another crew comes in and they cut the meat and refrigerate it. Then others come in to prepare mashed potatoes, and gravy and all the other things that went with the dinner.

“It’s like a team and it works,” Buff said.

“Tell everyone that we’re going to do this again next years, both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Everyone who attended had a good time and the Rotary and the many volunteers who helped out also enjoyed being there,” Buff said.

Many of those who attended the dinner noticed that the Nativity scene at the entrance to the parish hall had been plagued by a thief who had stolen he baby Jesus from his manger.

Buff said he had noticed that it was gone earlier in the week, but that didn’t stop the merriment of the dinner and those who came. He said the number of people who came to eat was just about the same as last year.