Lent offers culinary specialties
All-you-can-eat fish dinners, and a 'drive-thru' too
Robert Delaney of The Michigan Catholic
Published March 9, 2007
Photos by Robert Delaney
Betsy Knapp, wife of former restaurateur Jim Knapp, and Pat Phelan batter fish to be fried at Immaculate Conception School, Ira Township. | Ira Township — Those who want to eat inside Immaculate Conception School can enjoy all-you-can-eat dinners of either fish or macaroni and cheese. Those who want carryout orders need never leave their cars.
Now in its second year of a revived Lenten dinners program, Immaculate Conception is offering the convenience of fast-food restaurants' "drive-thru" service each Friday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Those wanting carryout orders can either call ahead or just pull up to where a volunteer will take their order and relay it by walkie-talkie to the kitchen.
Young volunteers from the parish then act as runners to bring their orders out and deliver them to the drivers.
"We've already doubled the number of takeout dinners, and we're expecting to quadruple the number," says Carol Gafa, coordinator of the Lenten dinners for the parish and school.
And she expresses pride in the quality of the meals Immaculate Conception is serving, with former restaurateur Jim Knapp supervising the cooking of the fried or baked cod, or macaroni and cheese, with sides of coleslaw, french fries and green beans, plus roll and butter, and cake for dessert. Gafa describes the results of Knapp's culinary efforts as "absolutely wonderful."
The all-you-can-eat feature is also new this year. "We're hoping for a greater volume of people," Gafa explains, adding that they are projecting an average of 400 people each week versus last year's average of 300.
Also, they have started accepting Visa and MasterCard. "We really, really wanted to make this easy for people," she says.
Nathan Baravik, 10, delivers a carryout order to Mary Ann Rovito last Friday. Immaculate Conception, IraTownship, offers a "drive-thru" option for orders. | Gafa is a member of a three-person fund-raising committee, along with Colleen Wooten and Jim Charboneau, the members of which take turns supervising fund-raising activities during successive portions of the year, working with Mike Denys, who chairs all the fund-raising efforts at Immaculate Conception.
Thirty-six volunteers from the parish are involved in operating the Lenten dinner program, working in two shifts each Friday night, with some helping prepare on Thursdays.
Fr. David Burgard says he is very happy to see the fish frys resumed, after an absence of several years following the retirement long-time fish fry coordinator Beth Kastler.
"Lenten fish frys are a long-time Catholic tradition, and it also brings in needed funds, but perhaps most important is the community coming together," he says.
Immaculate Conception School is at 7043 Church Road, just off M-29, in Ira Township. The number to call to place orders or for more information is (586) 725-3051.
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