Community News

Cooking out for the community

The men who grill, from left, Don Jefferson, Wesley Jefferson, Robert Johnson, Pokey riley, Allen Johnson, and Tony Johnson
The kitchen ladies, from left, Tenecha Johnson, Geraldine Jefferson, Emma Maye, Gloriadine Robinson, Celestine McCaskill, Marilyn Edwards.

By SHERRY DIGMON
News Staff Writer

When most people were sleeping in Monday morning, Don Jefferson and his crew were cooking. They started at 6 a.m. The kitchen crew came in about 7. By noon (actually a little before), they were serving plates of ribs, fish and chicken, and bags containing hamburgers and hot dogs.
And folks came and picked up plates to take home – free of charge.
The annual event, held on North Main at a building owned by Christian Memorial Funeral Home, is sponsored by Ricky Powers and Don Jefferson with Christian Memorial.
“It’s our way of giving back to the community,” Jefferson said.
The cookout is a family affair for him, wife JoAnn and sons Wesley and Bradley pitch in and help.
So how much food do you prepare to serve everyone who might come by? They fixed 30 slabs of ribs, 250 pounds of chicken, 75 pounds of fish, 80 hamburgers and 80 hot dogs.
The weather has been threatening for several days with the approach of Tropical Storm Alberto, but Wesley said the cookout was going on regardless of the weather. In the past, they have had a large tent with tables and chairs for folks who wanted to eat there, but they didn’t put up the tent this year, just in case. Thankfully, the weather cooperated.