Pierogis, fish fry, pizza and soup have long been staples of
Lenten Friday meals at local churches. The dinners help raise
money for parishes and Knights of Columbus councils.
Knights of Columbus Council No. 12791 at Our Lady of Hope
Church in Potomac Falls had an idea for something different.
One of the Knights, David Tilton, has New Orleans roots and
said that his family has always enjoyed cooking Cajun
dinners. With the help of his father, Lee, from Maryland, the
council ordered crawfish from New Orleans and along with
plenty of shrimp, fish sticks, coleslaw, red beans and rice
and corn on the cob set their inaugural Cajun Night for March
20.
The winter that wouldn’t end had another last gasp that day
as snow closed Loudoun County schools along with Our Lady of
Hope School. But people have to eat, and as the Knights
boiled shrimp in large steaming pots near the entrance of the
parish center, a slow trickle of customers grew until a
steady stream of people waited in line to scoop up the Cajun
delights.
Lee Tilton, the outside chef, supervised the handling of the
crawfish and shrimp with help from Knights Gary Vecchio and
Joe Hunter.
David Tilton was in the kitchen, cooking and tasting the red
beans and rice with help from Knights Dennis Riley, Dennis
Rotherman and Dan Whalen.
Their work did not go unappreciated.
While one young man said, “It tastes like brains,” as he bit
into a crawfish head, the consensus of others at the feast
was positive for the alternative Lenten fare.
Lisa Orosa said, “It’s pretty good.”
The Chung family, father John, wife Yvette and son Michael,
wearing plastic hats, enjoyed the shrimp and crawfish.
Knight Mike Foley said it was all tasty, but had another
reason to like the food.
“It all goes to KOVAR,” he said, referring to the Virginia
Knights of Columbus charity that raises funds to assist
people with intellectual disabilities.
Grand Knight Clyde Slick said that about 200 people enjoyed
the Cajun food, while about 16 Knights helped out to assure a
successful event.
The quantity of food was impressive including 75 pounds of
shrimp, 90 pounds of crawfish, 50 pounds of potatoes, 10
pounds of garlic, 20 pounds of uncooked rice, 100 ears of
corn and 10 gallons of red beans.
As Father William P. Saunders, pastor, waited in line for
food, he mused about the event, and similar parish outreach
ministries.
“It’s a good way to build a parish community,” he said.
When the kitchen closed and the last customers were full,
Stations of the Cross began in the church, a reminder of the
holy season of Lent.
