The Dadio has been overwhelmed with church dinners this fall. In the latest foray into these good eats I found myself at
Faith Lutheran Church on the southwest side of Janesville. I noticed a cookbook on the ticket table noting the building has been there since 1956. They tell me it has had some refurbishing lately. It is a big brick structure right in the old well-established neighborhood on that side of town.
This church feast boasts a Scandinavian theme. I was greeted at the door by a friendly greeter - much like you might experience at your favorite restaurant. Once in the foyer, I was greeted by by a couple more folks, dressed in traditional Norwegian costume - lots of red and white. Once I paid my way for the meal, I was escorted to the table with dessert already in hand. The seating was family style. All the folks helping bring out the eats were color coordinated.
Of course there was Swedish meatballs with gravy. The sides were good boiled potatoes and tender green beans. A basket of fruit bread and Swedish Limpa rye bread made it around the table. There were cups of Norwegian fruit soup, rice pudding, and cole slaw. A plate of three types of Norwegian cookies were the dessert. Every church dinner lately has offered cranberry sauce - this one was no exception. The thing that caught my palate was a rolled flat bread called lefse. It reminds me of a wheat tortillas.
Overall,
Faith Lutheran's annual dinner presentation was one of the more choreographed ones I've been too. My emphasis is really on the food. I cleaned my plate up like a lumber jack.
I did get to chat with some folks at my table. There was quite a bit of reminiscing about growing up with Norwegian parents and grandparents. On my way out I had a couple quick conversations with some servers, and it sounds like they have had this dinner for about five years. They put it together quite well for it being a rather young event as annual dinners go. These things are not easy to put together.
For the record, this particular post is in regards to the meal that was held on Saturday, October 2, 2010. Find
Faith Lutheran Church at 2116 Mineral Point Avenue, Janesville, Wisconsin. Pencil them in for next year. Call (608) 754 - 0261 for more information.
Wisconsin Military Service Person Special Mention of the Week
(each week Cooldadiomedia mentions a Wisconsin service person killed in Iraq or Afghanistan)
Army Private Evan Abraham Bixler, 21, of Racine, Wisconsin, died on Friday, December 2006, from wounds received in Hit, Iraq while participating in security operations. He was in Company A, 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, out of Baumholder, Germany. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel noted that at the time of his death he was the fourth military service person from Racine County to have died in Iraq. And, he was the third Wisconsin military service person to die in that particular month. The paper went on to say Bixler was a 2003 graduate of Washington Park High School in Racine. He was known to have had a passion for joining the military; at earlier attempts he was denied entry into the Army for medical reasons. He later received a medical waiver to enlist. Private Bixler was sent to Iraq on November 1st, 2006. Evan was said to have had a good sense of humor and was an inspiration to his comrades. In a subsequent article, the Journal Sentinel mentioned Bixler was best friends with Army Specialist Eric Poelman, 21, who grew up in Mount Pleasant and was killed in June 2005 in Iraq. Wisconsin 2007 Senate Joint Resolution 18 notes that at the time of his death Evan Bixler was survived by his parents, Kevin and Lisa Bixler; his sister, Amy Theresa Bixler; grandparents, John and Carol Neufeld; and, his girlfriend Naomi Jacob. Evan Bixler was the 66th Wisconsin military service person to be killed in Iraq since the spring of 2003.
As of this blog entry's posting date:
98,171 Iraqi civilians have been killed in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
9,722 Iraqi Security Forces have been killed in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
4,427 Americans have been killed in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
1311 Americans have been killed in Afghanistan since October, 2001.
318 Coalition soldiers have been killed in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
823 Coalition soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan since October, 2001.
31,964 U.S. troops have been wounded in action in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
8,394 U.S. troops have been wounded in action in Afghanistan since October, 2001.
102 Wisconsin soldiers have been killed in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
22 Wisconsin soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan since October, 2001.
144 journalists (several nationalities) have been killed in Iraq since Spring, 2003.
21 journalists (various nationalities) have been killed in Afghanistan since October, 2001.
Wisconsin military service person special mention of the week, military casualty, and journalist casualty information sources: Committee to Protect Journalists; cnn.com; Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; washingtonpost.com; thehighground.org; Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs; iraqbodycount.org; www.defense.gov/news/casualty.pdf; and, icasualties.org.
