On the last Thursday of the month, the former Canyon Elementary School in Hungry Horse is a beehive of activity.

A dedicated corps of volunteers tended to the Feb. 26 meal preparation with laser-like focus. Louann Mohn buttered garlic bread. Flo Williams chopped lettuce like a pro. Other women shored up various details, tending ovens full of lasagna, cutting up pans of brownies and pulling together all the last-minute details.

As the 5:30 p.m. serving time approached, Vera Smith was seemingly everywhere as she orchestrated the monthly symphony of food and fellowship.

The Canyon Community Dinners program has been quietly and faithfully operating at the school gymnasium for nearly a year now, and the response has steadily increased over the months, said Smith, who coordinates the program. Eventually, volunteers would like to add more meals each month, possibly along with community activities that could be staged before or after the meals.

The program sprang from an idea the Rev. Debbie Schmidt of Whitefish United Methodist Church had about serving residents of the Canyon. The Rev. Bradley Wirth of All Saints’ Episcopal Church also was involved from the get-go, and Columbia Falls United Methodist Church and Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Columbia Falls likewise joined the effort.

“Bradley said, ‘Vera, you take the ball and run with it,’” Smith recalled. “The intention was to bring food and fellowship to Canyon area residents.”

Though the program is supported by the four churches, volunteers with Canyon Community Dinners do not proselytize during the monthly gatherings. They simply dish out hospitality along with nutritious homemade meals.

Thanksgiving was a “golden opportunity” to serve a community meal, Smith said. Volunteers cooked eight turkeys and made all the trimmings to feed 65 guests on Thanksgiving Day, with an additional 10 meals made to go.

“We were exhaustedly happy,” she said with a smile.

Smith, who worked in the hotel industry for years, said she was compelled to get involved because of her Christian faith.

“The bottom line is that I am doing this because I am called to do so by my baptismal vows,” she said. “And I’m doing it with joy.”

As the program has grown in popularity, she has noticed guests lingering after dinner, visiting with one another.

“Another offshoot has been that the neighborhood has said, ‘What can I do to help?’” she noted.

Several residents of the Canyon now regularly help with setup, serving and cleanup.

“They’re willing to do whatever we ask,” Smith said gratefully. “We consider our volunteers as important as our guests.”

Mohn, a retired Columbia Falls teacher, said she got involved with the program through her church because feeding the hungry is a personal mission. She is the team coordinator for a local CROP (Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty) Hunger Walk held each fall.

“It’s dear to my heart that children don’t go hungry,” Mohn said. “This is a worthy cause and I just love the people.”

Smith said the program has developed a symbiotic relationship with the community and School District 6, which owns the school building. The school district brought in a convection oven for the meal program and replaced a three-sink unit.

“They fixed plumbing issues as well as updated electrical systems,” Smith said. “So essentially we were up and running with no kitchen expenditure.”

Canyon Baptist Church in Hungry Horse brought in appliances for its Wednesday night program and invited Canyon Community Dinners to share in the use of the appliances.

Spruce Park Appliance, Canyon Food Market and Tri-State Restaurant Supply are among the local businesses that have donated to the program.

Funding for the meal program largely has come from the four churches. The Columbia Falls Methodist congregation had a Bounty For All fundraiser that sold excess garden produce after church services and raised about $400, Smith said.

Volunteers held a raffle during the Christmas holiday season that brought in some money and generated enthusiasm for the program.

Smith jokingly said the meal program is a “huge testament for more than two women working in the kitchen at one time.” Teamwork is a constant, and it’s not all women doing the work. Carl Sobczak is an integral team member, Smith pointed out: He’s the lead dishwasher.

The goal of Canyon Community Dinners is simple, she said. “You see a need and you fill it.”

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.