Berdon Pedersen, rural Davenport, happily shared his birthday celebration with students at Deshler Lutheran School. Above, he cuts labels with the help of Kennedi Roberts and Evelyn Schultz. Photo by Susan Harms.
Sophie Kessler, Evan Endorff, Cameron Schardt, Maddyn Harms, Natalie Kessler and Alex Elting pack a Mercy Meal. Photo by Susan Harms. They are students at Deshler Lutheran School.
Deshler Lutheran School students gather in front of and behind the filled meal boxes packaged for Mercy Meals on Friday. Photo by Susan Harms.
Hunger isn't something most Deshler Lutheran School students think about and especially when they dine on their noon meal prepared by Rachelle Jarchow, DLS cook. Just mention her name, and the students cheer! However, this school semester, students have become much more aware of hunger and that many children in the world do not have adequate food and nutrition.
Each school semester, Deshler Lutheran Schools support a mission project which this fall has been Mercy Meals through Orphan Grain Train in Norfolk, Nebraska, a Christian volunteer network that ships donations of food, medical items, clothing and other needed supplies to people in America and across the world. Weekly chapel gifts funded the DLS project. On Friday, Dec. 13, during the school day, students and staff capably packaged 12,312 meals to be sent around the world to those in need.
Chapel services at DLS are held every Thursday morning, and often parents, grandparents or other interested people are in attendance. Thankfully, the offering goal of $1,200 for the Mercy Meals project was met just before the packaging date.
Everyone looked very different Friday when the activity began as all students, staff and helpers put on plastic aprons, gloves and hair coverings. Students manned several stations throughout the morning and afternoon.
Stickers with package and expiration dates were first put on each plastic bag that was printed with the nutritional and food content and cooking instructions. That bag was then sent on to one of four stations manned by five students where they measured and poured the ingredients which included a large cup of rice, a similar amount of dried ground soybeans, a small scoop containing six dried veggies and finally a chicken flavoring packet containing 20 vitamins and minerals. Each bag weighs one pound and is enough to serve a meal to six people.
The filled bags were then sent on to two teams of three, each who weighed every bag to be certain it could contain as much nutrient food product as possible but not an excess. Then, the bags were sent on to the group of four who sealed the bags securely. Next, the bags were grouped into piles of 36 and were then packed into cardboard boxes the students had assembled before the process began. Each box weighed 36 pounds.
In recent years DLS formed small student groups called chapel families which includes students from all grade levels. Those groupings were used throughout the day so that older students could teach and assist the younger students. As the day went on, many students switched around and helped in a variety of the stations.
Todd Voss is principal of Deshler Lutheran, and it was exciting indeed when he would announce the progress throughout the day by saying how many bags had been filled. Lots of cheering after those announcements! Other faculty working were Amy Voss, 5-6th grade teacher; Rachel McCown, 3-4 grade teacher; Kalli Mumm, teacher grades 1-2 and Julie Reinke, kindergarten teacher.
Pastor Greg Stuckwisch from Odell was instrumental in the DLS project as he delivered the food, equipment and supplies needed prior to Friday and also came to get the group started that day. He estimates he has helped pack nore than a million Mercy Meals throughout his years as a pastor. He serves Our Savior in Odell, St. Peters in Wymore, Zion in Harbine as well as First Lutheran in Sommerfield, Kansas, either as full-time or vacancy.
Another talented worker was Judy Bartels of Tobias who has volunteered several times at various places with the Mercy Meals project and knew the protocol for cleanliness and safety. Others who assisted were Donna Meyer, Berdon and Deena Pedersen and Susan Harms, all of Davenport.
Enthusiasm for the project was contagious, and everyone hopes they can repeat the project again in the future. One request was that school lunch for that day would include a sampling of the meals that were so lovingly packaged.
Deshler Lutheran School is an association with St. Peter Lutheran Church in Deshler, pastored by Brain Francik, and Trinity Lutheran (Friedensau) pastored by Pastor Jose Flores. Students from these congregations attend DLS as well as many students from the surrounding area. Praise be to God for such a grand day.
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