Volunteers welcome all veterans to partake in a free lunch they’ve hosted for nearly a decade at First Baptist Church of Soddy-Daisy. This year’s lunch is Monday, Nov. 12 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The meal is free for veterans and $5 for their guests.
Members of the Soddy-Daisy High School Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps perform a sword salute to honor veterans entering First Baptist Church of Soddy-Daisy for a previous year’s veterans lunch.This is the second of the event’s nine years without the late WV Roberson, the event’s original organizer and a Korean War veteran. Before his death, the longtime Soddy-Daisy resident left detailed written instructions for current organizer Roy Rector and other volunteers, said his widow Linda Roberson. Four generations of WV Roberson’s family, from Linda to his great-grandchildren, continue to volunteer at the event.
“That was his dream,” she said, referring to the event’s continuation. “He was so afraid after he would pass that it wouldn’t carry on.”
Food for the meal – chicken, ham, green beans, corn, potatoes, coleslaw and tea – is donated by local eateries including Home Folks Restaurant, Wimpies Country Restaurant, Southern Restaurant and Aris’ Harbor Light Restaurant and Lounge, and is prepared by volunteers. Chick-fil-A on Highway 153 is donating the chicken, former Hamilton County Commissioner Fred Skillern is providing the ham, and desserts are homemade by church members, Roberson said.