When the Waynesville Rotary Club was challenging itself on how it could do more in the community, Haywood Pathways Center emerged as a logical partner.
Bronwen Talley-Coffey, who is the assistant governor representing Haywood County in Rotary International District 7670, said she was at a district conference clubs were challenged to expand already established community service projects to make a greater impact.
“The Waynesville Rotary Club members in attendance chose Haywood Pathways to expand their reach beyond simply serving meals and making food/supply donations to working with staff and residents to identify needs and make a lasting impact,” Talley-Coffey said.
Several Rotarians met with Haywood Pathways leadership to look for ways the club could serve on sustainable projects that would benefit the center and Haywood County.
William Fulghum had already spearheaded a Rotary effort last Christmas to provide and cook ribeye steak dinners for the Pathways center residents, plus purchase gifts for the children at the shelter.
When he learned an outdoor cooking space would provide a big boost, he stepped up to oversee the project. Club member Ron Leatherwood, along with Ryan Newell with the Sunrise Rotary Club, created the blueprints for the covered shed
Seven Rotarians spent a total of 120 hours building the structure behind the kitchen, and then equipped the area with a grill, a flat-top Blackstone grill and two fryers.
Shawn McCoy, the food services director at Pathways, is beyond delighted with how the project turned out.
“We’ll use this space often,” McCoy said. “Instead of always having baked chicken, we can offer fried. We didn’t have a flat grill before, so that opens up lots of possibilities.”
Talley-Coffey said the second part of the project is gaining a better understanding about operations at Pathways — and then helping the greater community understand the needs.
“We decided, what better way to do that than have a social event?” she said.
The effort spawned the idea of a community fish fry free to all those at the center as well as the community at large. On May 28, about 180 meals of deep-fried white fish, fries, slaw, corn and hush puppies were prepared and served at Pathways and delivered to the Cruso community, all free of charge.
Seven Waynesville Rotary members volunteered a total of 120 hours to build an outdoor cooking shed at Haywood Pathways Center. Donated photo
Many Rotarians, community leaders and citizens came to enjoy the meal and enjoy the fellowship of Pathways staff and residents.
“When a group like the Rotary Club of Waynesville chooses to invest time, energy, and resources into a project like this, they are not just building an outdoor cooking area. They are helping create a place where people can gather, eat, laugh, talk and be reminded that they are part of a community,” said Julie Cloninger, the executive director of Haywood Pathways Center. “We serve individuals and families in Haywood who are experiencing homelessness, hunger and crisis. Our campus provides shelter, meals and support for people working toward stability.”
Cloninger said The Waynesville Rotary Club has been a key supporter in the past and that she’s she looking forward to seeing how the club can help Pathways continue to transform lives going forward.
“At Haywood Pathways, we believe something powerful happens when people gather around food,” Cloninger said. “Thanks to Waynesville Rotary, we will soon have a new place to do just that.”
Parker Chatham, the Pathways Center’s development director, said partnerships such as those with the Rotary Clubs, are vital to helping the center make a difference in the community.
“Partnerships like this matter because they remind us that this work does not belong to one organization alone. It belongs to the whole community,” Chatham said. “When a group like the Waynesville Rotary Club chooses to invest time, energy and resources into a project like this, they are not just building an outdoor cooking area. They are helping create a place where people can gather, eat, laugh, talk and be reminded that they are part of a community.”
Rotary is a global service organization, and the Waynesville Rotary Club is celebrating more than 100 years of service in the community through the organization’s well known motto, “Service Above Self.”
There are three Rotary Clubs in Haywood County — Waynesville Rotary, Sunrise Rotary and Haywood Rotary, which serves the eastern part of the county.