The Mission of the Funeral Meals Ministry here at St. Pius has been traditional managed by members of the Ladies Guild, and is intended to help provide comfort to family members of the deceased.  Currently, Micki Chin, has been the unofficial coordinator for several years.  These meals are offered to all families of parishioners having a service at St. Pius X.   The Ministry provides a meal to the family members and visiting friends of the deceased on the day of the funeral Mass.  The meal is provided at a time when having to think about cooking or eating at a restaurant, especially for those visiting from out of town, is time consuming, a distraction and even a financial or emotional burden.

We have a core group of volunteers who are familiar with the kitchen and our procedures, who help organize, serve and clean up.  The food itself is provided pot-luck style by volunteers as well, supplemented if necessary by food purchases, paid for by the Church.  A list of volunteers is maintained and each time a funeral meal is needed the coordinator will call upon volunteers to ask if they can prepare a dish and bring it to the church, and / or help in serving and cleanup.  We are always in need of people to help bring food or help with the serving.

Since the time of death is unplanned for most people, this group may only get a few days advance notice.  The coordinator determines how many volunteers and dishes are needed based on who is available and the size of the expected group.

If you wish to participate and be added to the list of people contacted to provide food for a funeral meal, or help setup or clean up, contact Micki Chin, 318-210-1099 or mzchin@me.com  Or you can let the church office know when you call to make funeral arrangements, that you would like to be contacted. 
 

Coordinating a Funeral Meal

You are NOT required to provide a dish every time, we understand there are times you are not available.  And you may not even be contacted every time there is a funeral meal.  

The coordinator will go through the list of volunteers until there are enough dishes pledged.  The time required on the day of the funeral meal takes approximately 2-3 hours if you help in setup, serving and cleanup.  If you are only providing a dish, it can simply be dropped off.This meal is served in the Parish Hall or taken to a residence, whichever the family prefers.   

For the parish, providing the meal is a symbolic and practical way for St Pius to express sympathy and offer consolation, support, love, and solidarity with a bereaved family. The time following the death of a loved one can be so stressful; we hope that providing a meal after a service is one less thing to worry about that will help in their comfort.
 
We thank you for your support of this wonderful and important ministry.