Eat Your Way Around the World

There are only a few tickets left to the International Dinner at (NBCC) on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 6 p.m. The fundraiser benefits NBCC’s mission trip in July.

Four continents will be featured at the dinner including Eurasia, Africa, North America and Europe. Foods from countries on each of the continents will be served with all of the dishes being planned and prepared by volunteers in the church.

Karen Stoeckle is heading the dinner, which is in its third year, and also responsible for Eurasia’s table.

“There are lots of countries represented and every kind of dessert you can imagine,” said Stoeckle. “People rave about it because it’s very different. The kids help serve people, work at the food stations and clear the tables. There are a lot of good cooks in our church and everyone helps out.”

Some menu items from each of the continents includes:

• Eurasia: black Russian bread, coconut chicken curry soup, pork egg rolls, beef negimaki and Pakistan rice pilaf
• Africa: Moroccan lentil soup
• North America: meatloaf, spoon bread, Haitian rice and baked beans
• Europe: penne a la vodka, Polish stuffed cabbage, Greek bread and spanakopita

About the Mission Trip

A group of four youths and two adult chaperones will be heading to the Crow Reservation in Montana for a week in July.

Pastor Deborah Roy heads the mission trip for the third straight year. In 2009, the group went to Louisiana with the Branford Congregational Church, while last year, the mission trip was to an Indian reservation in Arizona.

Both of Stoeckle’s daughters have participated in the trips, but with her older daughter now in college, this year it will just be her younger daughter, Grace, who is a junior at , attending the trip. Stoeckle has seen the importance of this kind of community service.

“As teenagers, it opens their eyes,” she said. “It opened my kids’ eyes and they realized how lucky they are and how they can help other people. It also gives them self-confidence knowing they can make a difference.”

Other youths going on the mission trip are sophomore Nathan Hubert, freshman Jake Gray and Kurt Casanova, who is a sophomore at Vinal Tech.

In addition to Roy, deacon Scott Small will attend the trip as a chaperone.

Other upcoming fundraisers include a plant sale, a car wash, butter braids sale and a talent show.

For tickets or to make a donation, call Karen at 203-605-2661.