Masterton Community Church Pastor Pete Hampson. PHOTO/EMILY NORMAN
Happy faces filled the Masterton Memorial Stadium yesterday as bellies were filled with Christmas Lunch.
The Room at the Inn Lunch, put on annually by the Masterton Community Church (MCC), served up hot vegies, meat, and pudding for about 200 people.
Pastor Pete Hampson from MCC said the free meal was for those in the community who were going through hardships, or would have otherwise spent Christmas alone.
“The heart of any community should be how generous it is to those that are struggling,” he said.
“This is something we’ve always wanted to do so that Masterton is known for something great.”
Mr Hampson said his dream would be that there would be no need for the special event – “that everybody in the community was connected and had somewhere to be, family to be with”.
“But until that happens we’ll be here.”
Chris Archer of Woodville and Ann-Marie Bengston of Pahiatua. Ann-Marie has been coming along to the lunch for eight years now. PHOTO/EMILY NORMAN
Children lined up to play on the bouncy castle that was set up, and fought over the Christmas crackers that lined about a dozen long dining tables.
People came from all over Wairarapa and further afar, including Ann-Marie Bengston from Pahiatua.
This was the eighth year she had come for the Christmas event.
“It’s just fabulous down here and it’s sad that the Town Hall is unavailable because of earthquake standards, but it’s very good to have somewhere that people can come,” she said.
Michelle Norman (middle), with two of her daughters Angel, left, and Michaela. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANAngel and Michaela Norman of Masterton open their Christmas crackers. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANFrom left, Barbara Lambert and Barry Scobie from Masterton, and Gail MacKenzie of Featherston help dish out the food. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANVolunteers cook some Christmas meats on the barbecue supplied by Mitre 10 Mega. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and friends provide musical entertainment for guests. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and friends provide musical entertainment for guests. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANAlexia Apiata, 7 and her brother Jodeci, 10 get ready to dig in to their Christmas feed. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANLiz Kirkland, left, and Masterton District Councillor Deborah Davidson take registrations at the door. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANAbinadi, Sam, Kathy, and Zenos Hapi from Masterton came to hear the choir sing. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANBill and Bev Hague of Masterton. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANChildren line up for a selection of Christmas meats. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANEzra Stobbart volunteering at the lunch. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANPeter and Liz Hing. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANJoe and Nadine Hawea of Masterton. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and friends provide musical entertainment for guests. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and friends provide musical entertainment for guests. From left, Ben, Tuakana, and Kiri Riwai Couch, and Paremo Matthews. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANKids love the jumping castle on site. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANSisters Angel and Michaela Norman show off their candy cane haul. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANSiblings Robin Lane and Jackie Cooper of Masterton. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANPeter and Jackie Rimene of Masterton. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANChris Archer of Woodville and Ann-Marie Bengston of Pahiatua. Ann-Marie has been coming along to the lunch for eight years now. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANElsie Murray and Michelle Norman. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANSanta Claus. PHOTO/EMILY NORMANKids line up for desserts. PHOTO/EMILY NORMAN
lol it’s me and my sister Alexia Apiata and Jodeci Apiata
Wht a great thing to do 4 people tht either don’t have anybody around or are lonely nobody should spend xmas alone good on the volunteers and the people who organize the xmas dinner and the ones tht donate the food
It’s shame I rang up and booked a seat at the Christmas lunch has I was on my own because my partner went to her parents in Hamilton but the church who was running the lunch rang me back on Christmas Day and told me no seats left so sad I was on my own on Christmas Day
Emily Ireland is Wairarapa’s Local Democracy Reporter, a Public Interest Journalism role funded through NZ On Air. Emily has worked at the Wairarapa Times-Age for seven years and has a keen interest in council decision-making and transparency.
lol it’s me and my sister Alexia Apiata and Jodeci Apiata
Wht a great thing to do 4 people tht either don’t have anybody around or are lonely nobody should spend xmas alone good on the volunteers and the people who organize the xmas dinner and the ones tht donate the food
It’s shame I rang up and booked a seat at the Christmas lunch has I was on my own because my partner went to her parents in Hamilton but the church who was running the lunch rang me back on Christmas Day and told me no seats left so sad I was on my own on Christmas Day