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Stone Soup local volunteer kitchen staff. photo by Jennifer McCombs |
CommentsTruckee Soup Night Aims to Bring a Community Together
Published: March 12, 2009by Jennifer McCombs
Kaili Sanchez, Deb Ryan and Penny Fink, Stone Soup Organizers.
photo by Jennifer McCombs
Click on images for slideshow
A popular children’s fable has set the foundation for change within the Tahoe-Truckee community and that change is Stone Soup.
The idea of community presence is needed more than ever during these unbalanced times and Truckee local Deb Ryan is doing all that she can to make this message clear.
“The goal of Stone Soup is to foster and strengthen our sense of community here in Truckee by creating a place to share a meal of bread and soup on a weekly basis,” she says.
The first soup was held Sunday, March 1 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. and will continue every Sunday until May 17 at the Truckee Recreation Center. The turnout for the first two Sundays exceeded 85 people and is expected to grow over the coming months. It is free to the community and a BYOB (bring your own bowl and spoon) but donations are always welcome.
“Stone Soup has taken a life of its own,” says Ryan.
Key organizers include Penny Fink, Kaili Sanchez and Ryan. Support is being provided from a myriad of local organizations and people including Project MANA, Truckee Donner Recreation & Park and Slow Food Lake Tahoe. The New York Times has even contacted Fink, wanting to learn more.
“Stone Soup is run entirely on a donation basis,” Ryan said. “The enthusiasm is incredible and the support is overwhelming.”
The fable of Stone Soup can be traced back to the mid 1800s and has been translated and transferred to many cultures and languages since. While there are variations of the story, the basic premise is two travelers walk into a village, carrying nothing more than an empty soup pot. They place a stone at the bottom and call it “stone soup” and curious villagers come and offer whatever they can to make the soup better. At the end of the day the soup becomes something more than just “stone soup,” it is transformed into delicious fare shared among the entire community.
All labor for Truckee’s Stone Soup comes from volunteer help and the goal is to have each Sunday gathering hosted by a particular group of friends or family – which will include creating the soup, setting up and taking down the tables, serving and adding to the overall spirit that a little nothing is actually a lot of something. As it stands now, every Sunday is filled with enough volunteers to fill every shift.
“Stone Soup rests in the spirit of our community, we give when we can and receive when we are in need,” says Ryan who adds that Truckee is a unique place with people that are very engaged in the quality of life for everyone in the community.
In a time where community support and understanding is needed more than ever it is the small gestures that travel the furthest and pave the way for change.
“It is important to remember just how full life really is,” says Ryan “and Stone Soup is our way of remembering that.”
~ Discuss this article with the author. Email jenniferm@moonshineink.com. For further info about Stone Soup, contact Deb Ryan at debryan1@gmail.com.
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