A fundraising drive-thru fish fry will be from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday for the cash-strapped America and Roby Anderson Center, 421 McClure Road in Columbus.
Dinners that include baked beans and cole slaw will be distributed in the parking lot because of COVID-19 limitations.
Beth Turner, vice president of the center’s board, mentioned that the facility’s roof just was replaced in mid-December at a cost of about $8,000. She said that need depleted much of the center’s operating budget.
Most recently, the center has been open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays to help area residents with specific needs, but it has not been open to neighborhood fellowship and coffee, which has been a draw in the past. It had reopened in the fall after closing in March due to the coronavirus, and Turner said that leaders hope to reopen it again soon.
In the fall, leaders said they hoped to offer services such as free tax preparation and other help. In the past, the center has featured everything from community meals to first-time home-buying help.
“We hope to restore some programming when COVID lets up a little bit,” Turner said.
Come Friday, organizers hope to sell about 250 meals at $8 per meal, according to Turner. Additional donations also will be accepted. People need no reservations. She hopes to have a way for people to donate online if they cannot attend.
Turner emphasized that if the event is successful, other similar events could follow. She also mentioned that the limited meal goal was set for a reason.
“Since this is our first time doing this, we weren’t really sure how many people would attend,” Turner said. “So we wanted to be careful so that we didn’t have a lot of food left over.”
Volunteers are preparing the meals. Organizers can accept cash, checks, and debit cards the day of the event.
An endowment fund from The Heritage Fund — the Community Foundation of Bartholomew County helps with general, monthly expenses, Turner said.
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”If you go” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
What: Drive-thru fish fry
When: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday
Where: America and Roby Anderson Center, 421 McClure Road
How much: $8 per meal, additional donations being accepted
[sc:pullout-text-end]
