Webb Alumni, Rotary Peacebuilders Host Community Soup Kitchen

McKENZIE (January 19) — Volunteers from two local organizations spent Martin Luther King, Jr. Day honoring the late civil rights icon with a day of service.

The Webb Alumni Association and the McKenzie Rotary Peacebuilders hosted a free community soup kitchen at historic Webb School.

Kim Bell-Webb, a member of both organizations and spearhead of the event, told The Banner, “Dr. King was all about community service, so we’re doing this to honor him.”

Bell-Webb said the event is built on King’s beliefs that “everybody can be great, because anybody can serve” and that meaningful service does not require degrees or status, but rather “a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love.”

Hot soup and chili, sandwiches, chips, desserts and drinks were served in the Webb gymnasium for dine-in or carryout. Meals were also delivered to the McKenzie Police and Fire departments, to both McKenzie Housing Authority subdivisions and to other local residences.

In total, an estimated 200 meals were served by over 25 volunteers, including several from outside the two host clubs.

Webb Alumni Vice President Michael Tate told The Banner, “Webb Alumni Association is a group of people that want to keep the legacy going, and one way to do that is serve the community. This is our third year to do something like this. We want the community to know Webb is here for them, and we want this alumni association to be what it was intended to be. Our foreparents left this building. They made sacrifices to build the building, and it’s left up to us to continue this legacy.”

Rotarian Sandi Roditis told The Banner, “We have a motto in Rotary, ‘service above self’. Kim has recently joined our Rotary Club and gotten very involved. She is our Peacebuilder coordinator. So with her involvement here at Webb School and bringing this to Rotary, it fit right in with our tenets of service above self and building relationships in McKenzie. It’s an honor and a privilege to be here at Webb School and to be a part of this today, just serving our community and reaching out and letting people know that we care about them.”

McKenzie Mayor Ryan Griffin said, “Events like today just remind me how the community can break down the walls of division and just come together for a purpose to unite and serve the community with a hot meal and fellowship. We’re just so grateful for Webb Alumni and what they do for the community. Just a great day to honor Martin Luther King and remember that love is truly the ultimate gift to serve to one another.’