Juniors Luke Sims and Brett Haas; and seniors Landon Durbin, Aidan Hahn, and David DeNeve, making full plates of food for the guests at Community Kitchen. COURTESY OF CHASE DENSON
A day of serving at Community Kitchen, featuring the St. Mary basketball team
Editor’s note: The Western Kentucky Catholic recently completed a project with the journalism class at St. Mary High School in Paducah. Journalism teacher Melissa Reed, collaborating with WKC editor Elizabeth Wong Barnstead, assigned articles to five students, who each chose a topic at the school to write about, with the agreement that these articles would be published by the WKC. Please enjoy the articles by these student writers.
BY JAKE MORRIS, SPECIAL TO THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC
Every year before the St. Mary High School basketball season begins, the boy’s team serves the people at the Community Kitchen in Paducah. This is not only a team bonding experience but also helps strengthen the boys’ faith by helping those in need. The team packaged, cooked, and served food to the people who needed it the most. They cleaned tables after people finished eating so the next group could enjoy a meal in a welcoming environment.
The players really enjoyed the opportunity to serve the community.
Senior Landon Durbin stated, “It was a very rewarding experience being able to work with my friends/teammates, and to be able to give back to the community.”
Everyone collectively worked hard for five hours to serve the community, and they enjoyed it at the same time.
Senior Aidan Hahn stated, “I learned that Community Kitchen is a welcoming environment that is willing to help everyone. I also learned that Community Kitchen is a place hundreds rely on, and it was a great experience to be able to help people that day.”
Community Kitchen is an organization dedicated to helping anybody in need of assistance, whether it is food or a place to sleep at night. It is very hard to serve a mass amount of people with little to no help. This is why the St. Mary basketball team dedicates a day once a year to help out and show our support to Community Kitchen’s goal of helping those in need. This is what God calls people to do as Christians. The players and coaches enjoyed every moment being there and are excited to return next year.
St. Mary basketball team closes out a huge day serving the community at the local Community Kitchen in Paducah. COURTESY OF CONRAD LOVE
Jake Morris is a sophomore at St. Mary High School in Paducah.
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Originally printed in the April 2024 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.
