Dear Friends,
Greetings! I hope you are all well and warm as you read this. It’s been so cold this fall in Minnesota! This past week the truck was in the shop, getting it’s generator fixed. We were thrown into our new winter plan a bit earlier than expected! We set up a table, and simplified our menu, serving up a hot Mexcian Sweet Potato Sandwich, boxing up Thai Curry Veggie and Creamy Chicken and Potato Soups, alongside chocolate chip cookies and veggie styx. Even without the big blue truck, folks know where to come for a delicious, nutritious, from scratch meal that will feed them in body and soul. We’re so grateful to all of our customers who have become regulars and friendly faces I so look forward to seeing each week. The Beloved Community is known in Jacob, in Libby, in Eric and Dinette, in Billy, in Bryan, in Kristen, and Roger. What an honor to spend a moment each week with them.
Here are a few updates:
FIRST – Save the Date! On November 22nd at 7pm, we will be livestreaming From Scratch – An Online Fundraiser for Shobi’s Table! As part of the Shobi’s Table community, you are invited to come together and help gather the “From Scratch ingredients” – this time funds! – that will help sustain and grow this ministry. Your support is absolutely essential to the health and well-being of this table based community. The evening will be emcee’d by the delightful Paul Damico-Carper and we have three special guests lined up to make the evening a special one – Rhoda Habedank, Nate Hogue and Beth Dooley! More details of how to watch and donate will be coming soon! We hope to “see” you there!
SECOND – We’ve updated our volunteer schedule! We’ve realized having volunteers on Wednesday to do lots of prep work is one of the best things we can do to make the rest of serving go smoothly. We’ve broken it into two shifts – one from 2-4pm and the other from 4-6pm. Hopefully with the later shift, we can get some of you who have regular work schedules. If you are interested, please reach out to us! We are so grateful for all those who have volunteered so far, and are looking forward to working with new folks too! For more information all about volunteering, please visit shobistable.org/volunteer.
THIRD – We hired a new Kitchen Assitant! You may have read on our Facebook page that Paul Damico-Carper got a full time job at a local church as their Assistant Director of Music and Worship Production. While we are so thrilled for Paul (he is an AMAZING musician!), we are also sad to not have his friendly presence with us on Fridays. Fortunately, the Spirit sent us Daniele Maeder! Daniele and her family are new to St Paul. She is a fantastic cook, has a warm and hospitable presence, and an excellent sense of humor. Shobi’s is lucky to have her!
What a season we are living in together! With the pandemic, the election season, wildfires and storms – it is a lot to navigate and handle. I hope that you all take the time to devote to the things that can ground us in God’s love – enjoying a good meal, serving your neighbor, listening to a friend, finding someone to listen – really listen to you, and most of all – finding a practice of Sabbath rest.
May you know the love of God deeply in this moment and always!
Deacon Kari and the Whole Shobi’s Table Team