Pastor Appreciation Reception

I can say this, because there is almost NO chance that my pastor will happen to read this blog post, at least before the event. We are planning a surprise reception to honor our pastor, who though retired from a career as a professor at Garrett Theological Seminary in Chicago, has graciously agreed to lead our tiny, struggling, congregation at Gregory Congregational United Church of Christ in Wilmington, NC. Needless to say, he is causing a shift in our paradigms, and though change is hard for us, it is happening. Therefore, the ladies of the church have decided to have a reception for him to celebrate his work with us, and for God and the community.

So, on to the menu.

The Church Women met yesterday after service to decide on the food, and who will bring what. After a short discussion of the virtues of Costco vs. the virtues of Sams Club, we decided on the following menu:

• Tea, with lemon
• Cake (we begged Mary to make sure it was a delicious one!)
• meatballs
• chicken drummettes
• Mary’s asparagus roll-ups
• cheese, crackers
• fruit
• Cynthia’s famous devilled eggs

Guess what I am assigned to bring? That’s right…cheese and crackers. I intend, however to bring the most delicious cheese and the fanciest crackers I can find. This is going to be a challenge, since I don’t really care for cheese, but I have a couple of sons and a husband who love cheese. They don’t know it yet, but they are my secret weapons!

I plan to get Mary to part with her asparagus roll-ups recipe, and share it here with you. Here is a recipe I found for asparagus roll-ups. We can compare this one with Mary’s, and after the event, I will let you know how they taste. (I adore asparagus!)

I am certain that “a good time will be had by all.”