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Hundreds make Christmas meal at St. Philip Neri School gym a reality

I was really pleased to read the brief article and see the photo featured in the Jan. 16 issue of The Criterion about the Christmas meal held in St. Philip Neri School gymnasium in Indianapolis each Christmas Day.

I wanted to add a little insight that the meal is the result of the collaborative effort of a tremendous group of people, who unselfishly give of their time and themselves in order to provide an opportunity for the homeless to have a wonderful Christmas celebration.

There are literally hundreds of people who freely contribute to make this event happen.

For example, there is Linda Clodfelter, without whom this event simply would not happen. She gathers and coordinates the food, the facilities, the manpower and so much more in order to provide a sumptuous feast.

There is Father Jeffrey Dufresne, pastor of St. Philip Neri Parish, who provides the kitchen and the gym and helps us recruit both volunteers and participants.

Then there’s Bill Sahm, president of Bishop Chatard High School in Indianapolis, and Ben Reilly, who together provide the four 14-passenger buses that pick up participants from several homeless shelters.

There are the St. Vincent de Paul conferences of Immaculate Heart of Mary and St. Christopher parishes, both in Indianapolis, who solicit legions of volunteers from those parishes, not to mention the staff and volunteers at the St. Vincent de Paul Distribution Center in Indianapolis. They not only volunteer at the event but also spend a large amount of time and effort beforehand gathering and assembling gift bags for the children, backpacks full of necessities for the adults, warm winter coats for all, centerpieces and decorations for the tables—people like Bobbi Sisk, Mary LaBuz and so many, many more.

The problem with singling out any individuals is that you then, by omission, fail to recognize the significant, loving, caring contributions of so many, many others. There are literally hundreds of people whose combined efforts make the Christmas meal happen. 

And, of course, there are the participants—the people this meal is actually about. They bring the joy. In spite of their circumstances, they celebrate with us.

This meal does not bring about a lasting difference in circumstances, but we pray that it at least provides a moment of normalcy and a moment of hope to many people for which those kinds of moments are in short supply.

- Stephen Hastings | Indianapolis