Volunteers reach goal, come in out of the cold
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POLSON — While sleeping out in a teepee in freezing weather might seem like a publicity stunt, there really was a reason — to call attention to a situation many Montanans deal with every night as well as raise money for Soup’s On, a community kitchen housed in the Wander Inn/Journey Be at 101 Seventh Ave. W.
Soup’s On needed approximately $1,800 to upgrade the wiring in the building.
“We aren’t coming in until we raise $1,800” the Soup’s On volunteers' sign tacked on the gatepost read.
However, John Payne, pastor at Journey Be, put his experience in the teepee in perspective.
“We think it’s a big deal to be sleeping outside for one night,” Payne said. “There are people in Montana who sleep outside every night — homeless people. Even in Polson some people live in their cars.”
Payne and Eric Donovan, both sporting fur-trimmed trapper hats and lots of warm clothes, spent Wednesday night, Feb. 23, in a tepee outside the Wander Inn with their dogs Ichiro and Charley.
“It was a two-dog night,” Payne said, smiling.
After celebrating its first birthday in December, Soup’s On serves about 200 meals per week and is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. An all-volunteer enterprise, Soup’s On serves a lunch of hot soup, bread and dessert.
The Soup’s On motto is anyone is welcome, and everyone is treated with dignity. Donations are accepted from those who would like to contribute.
Contributions keep the soup pots full, but they don’t quite stretch far enough to fix the wiring so Soup’s On head Sandy Farrell and Payne thought up a fundraiser.
Payne had heard of a group refusing to come in out of the weather until they met their goal as they called attention to homelessness. The duo also talked area restaurants into preparing soup to be voted on by clients and silent judges as the best soup in town.
At the end of the week, the people’s choice award was a tie between Big Mountain Chicken Noodle from the Big Sky Bistro and Italian Wedding soup from Cheri’s Kitchen Catering. The judges’ vote went to the borscht from Mission Mountain Natural Foods.
The teepee was a big draw according to Farrell. Belonging to Soup’s On supporter Dick Bratton, it’s been on the grounds since Feb. 21 and has an old-fashioned wood stove for heat.
“The teepee’s really sturdy,” Donovan said, although he added you could feel it shake when the wind whipped. Payne and Donovan drew a cold night, but other Soup’s On supporters also slept in the teepee. Farrell and Bratton spent Monday night in the teepee, Mary Eidelman braved Tuesday night by herself and Thursday was ladies' night with Farrell, Suzanne Luepke and Susan Evans drawing teepee duty.
Under her down sleeping bag, Farrell said she had a couple of insulite pads, a down mattress cover, and two wool blankets. She slept in her ski pants, wool socks and a hooded sweatshirt and had another wool blanket and the dog on top of her down sleeping bag.
After a refreshing night in the teepee, there’s been lots of work for many hands.
“We (Soup’s On volunteers) have learned a lot of new things about each other,” Farrell said, “We’ll be a stronger team.”
People have taken on leadership roles, too, Farrell said, such as cooking, organizing the silent auction and decorating.
People brought cookies, tons of cookies, Farrell said. They also dropped off donations, stopped in to wash dishes and visit.
Before lights out in the teepee, Soup’s On supplied entertainment and refreshments each night.
A silent auction and Mexican dinner on Saturday, Feb. 26 at the Elk’s Club rounded out the busy week for Soup’s On volunteers.
Best of all, the Soup’s On volunteers met their goal and more. They raised about $8,400 with “some pretty healthy pledges still coming in” Farrell said. The funds will be enough to fix the wiring and get a start on their next two major projects — flooring and a new stove.
“It’s not about the number of meals we serve,” Payne explained. “It’s not about the number of people who came to the dinner. It’s about our impact on the community.”
