OCEAN PARK – Each Monday afternoon, more and more north-end Peninsula residents are grabbing a healthy, hot meal from a local church’s newest volunteer-run program, the Community Table.

The Community Table, a non-profit meal program, got its start last spring when the Ocean Park Lutheran Church women’s group was thinking of new ways to reach out to the community. Among suggestions was the idea to offer a free hot meal for Ocean Park area residents that cannot get meals from PACE or do not have the transportation to get to His Supper Table in Long Beach.

With some research and hard work, the group was able to get financing for their project through fundraisers, private donations and grants from other churches. After receiving $400 in start-up pantry costs, getting approval from the Health Department and bringing together over 30 church volunteers to help, the group designated Mondays as their day to serve hot lunches.

The group of 30 was divided into groups of five, creating six teams that take turns cooking and serving each week.

“Each group consists of one cook, three servers and one person for cleanup,” explained Community Table Chairperson Mary Ellen Langridge.

With tips from several restaurant-experienced group members, each week’s meal is planned in advance – the menu includes a hot dish (such as spaghetti, meat loaf, or turkey), vegetables, fruit and one of the delicious cookies donated by the church ladies.

While it seems like the Community Table has plenty of food to go around, there are unexpected times when they do run out.

“In the beginning, we had about 20 people coming for a meal, now we have almost 40,” says Langridge. “For example, we ran out of food last Monday. But we keep cans of chili and boxes of macaroni and cheese in stock so that we can still give them a meal when they arrive.”

Located in a cozy clean room next to the kitchen near the front of the church, the Community Table provides indoor table seating, as well as seating on an outdoor patio with picnic tables.

“People are welcome to come eat and socialize or they can take it to go,” says Langridge, who will often deliver meals to a client when they cannot make it to the church. “We aren’t going to ask them to pray or talk about religion. The only question we ask them is how many meals they need.”

Though sometimes their clients would like to give a small donation in turn for a hot meal, the Community Table staff cannot accept donations from the clients they serve.

“When we start accepting money from our clients, then we technically become a business – and we don’t want that,” she explains.

After the first of the year, the group plans to evaluate their technique and how many people they serve, in hopes of expanding their goals.

“If things go well, we would like to be able to add a second day to serve lunch during the week,” says Langridge, who is in the process of recruiting volunteer teams from other local churches.

The Community Table serves free meals every Monday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Ocean Park Lutheran Church at 24002 “U” Street. If you are interested in volunteering with the Community Table or would like to donate funds or food items, please call the Ocean Park Lutheran Church at 665-6344.