Those craving a little bit of human connection had their wish granted this Christmas Day.
Free dinners were hosted today (Dec. 25) for the community at the Acton Town Hall Centre and St. Alban the Martyr Anglican Church in Glen Williams.
"The base motivation is that Christmas can be one of the loneliest times of the year," said Kathryn Lynch, one of the organizers of the Acton dinner. "If you can't think of each other at Christmas time, when can you care about other people?"
Her fellow head volunteers Kim Duncanson, Jennifer Jaquith, Penny McCabe and Kathleen Dills organized the celebration in Acton.
Dozens attended both dinners. Many came, ate their food and left. Others stayed a while, chitchatted and enjoyed each other's company. Father Aaron Orear of St. Alban's in Glen Williams said that the desired effect was achieved.
"There's a lightness in it (the gathering)," Orear said. "I'm looking right now from where we're standing, I see an investment banker and an electrical linesman talking to each other - two guys whose sphere of life would never intersect."
In particular, Orear marvelled at the "freedom and joy" as well as the "conviviality" behind all the interactions. As a community leader, many of his flock have spoken to him about the loneliness and isolation they feel.
"Some of the people here who are serving, they are here because they are lonely too," he said, adding, "When we do something for someone else, not only does it give us purpose and a thing to do, it connects us to other people."
Food for the dinners was donated by the community. The usual Christmas cuisine of turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes was served up, among many other items. As there's always room for dessert, neither event skimped on the sweet stuff.
