NEWPORT — For 26 years, the word spaghetti has meant one thing: A way to support Wilson Hospice while enjoying a spaghetti dinner.
The Newport Sportsmen Club will host its 26th annual spaghetti dinner to benefit Wilson Hospice of Wilson Health on Sunday, Feb. 11, 2018, at their home grounds located on Range Line Road, Newport, Ohio. Serving time will be from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The dinner will include all you can eat spaghetti, tossed salad, garlic bread and beverage. Again this year, a person can dine at the club or request carryouts.
Donations will again be accepted for the dinner with 100 percent of the donations being donated to the hospice group at Wilson Hospital, Sidney, Ohio.
The club will again be featuring their well known homemade spaghetti sauce. Every year members make 100 gallons of sauce to be used for this event. The members start early in the morning the Sunday before the dinner to prepare the sauce.
“From our experience the sauce needs to be cooked and then re-cooked the day of the dinner,” said Dick Barhorst, the club’s president. “Spaghetti sauce is one of those items that acquires a better taste if you can leave it set and then re-cook it before you serve it. We will spend most of the day preparing the sauce on the Sunday before the dinner. We could not do everything on the day of the dinner”.
At last year’s event the club served in the area of 700 dinners starting at 11 a.m. through 1:30 p.m. The members averaged over five servings per minute again last year.
“We made a couple of changes to our serving process last year that really kept the line moving, said Barhorst. “Every year we work to improve the flow and reduce the effort to prepare and serve the dinners. The nice thing is every one who attends understands the task at hand and is patient with us. Many of the attendees visit with Hospice volunteers, family and friends.”
The donations were over $12,000 for hospice last year. In the first 25 years of this benefit dinner, there has been over $168,000 donated to hospice.
“The folks attending this dinner have been very generous in the past years,” said Barhorst. “We always have a few folks who are very helpful with large donations. The Country Concert at Hickory Hill Lakes is one of those large donors.”
In 2017 Wilson Hospice celebrated its 30th year of existence. Wilson Hospice is a program designed to bring quality of life and compassionate care to people facing a life-limiting illness or injury.
“Twenty-five years ago when we started this dinner there were very few folks who knew or understood the benefits of this group. Today more and more folks are understanding and using these wonderful services,” said Barhorst. “The Hospice Group and its volunteers are there to help and support the entire family. Our club spnsors other activities during the year for profit so we can fund this event. Our members are very pleased to volunteer their many hours to support this unit. Over the last 25 years we have had many members benefit from this group. So, we feel we are just giving back a little for what our members and their families have received. If you have never attended this event, come on out and see what you have been missing.”
