On Friday nights from September to June at St. John’s Episcopal Church, anywhere from 30 to 50 people gather for the weekly Community Supper, which is arranged and cooked by volunteers. Gayle Maynard has been a steady volunteer since 2012 and has seen what the dinners bring to the community firsthand.

“Originally the thought behind it was that we have invisible needy people who need a healthy meal, but we’ve found out that we have people from all financial stratas and what people really need is a place to a be a part of a community—and that’s why it’s a Community Supper,” says Gayle. “It’s about getting out and being with other people. The emotional support is much more important than food they get.”

Gayle knows how important the emotional support is. While she began attending the church more than 40 years ago when she and her husband moved to town, she didn’t get heavily involved in the community suppers until 2012.

“When I lost my husband, I found there was so much empty time,” says Gayle. “I started doing more with the church, going to the suppers regularly, and volunteering to cook.”

Gayle volunteers to cook about once a month during the non-winter months and is always ready to help out. One of the hardest parts about volunteering for Gayle has been preparing a meal that feeds up to 50 people, but she usually teams up with another volunteer to make the meal. There have been times that Gayle has provided the food and other times that she makes use of the church fund for ingredients.

“We have a pretty steady crowd, but you don’t know if you’ll have 30 or 50 people, so it can be a challenge,” says Gayle, who is also the treasurer at St. John’s. “I’ve been in situation where I could donate things and not take money from the church fund, but for people who want to volunteer, all the food would be paid for by the church.”

The money for the food comes from donations the church has received over the years to benefit the community supper. There is also a requested donation of $1 for those who attend the dinner, but no one is turned away.

The community suppers draw people from elderly housing and members of the church, but there are also many members of the general community who attend. In addition to those in attendance, the community suppers also serve those who are homebound.

“They’ll call on Friday to ask, ‘What’s for dinner?’ and it’s nice because they get to interact, they get food, and they get a visitor,” says Gayle.

While there are several steady volunteers, as well as several organizations such as the Rotary Club, that help out, Gayle is quick to point out that more volunteers are always welcome. People can volunteer to plan a meal, cook, help out in the kitchen, and set up for the dinner.

When Gayle isn’t cooking up a meal for the community supper, she often brings along a special guest to dinner—Rosie, her Corgi who is a certified therapy dog. Rosie came into Gayle’s life after her husband passed away.

“When I cook, people are mad because [Rosie] doesn’t come—she’s become part of the team,” laughs Gayle, “People always talk about how you should rescue a dog, but Rosie rescued me after I lost my husband.”

While Gayle had shown dogs in breed and obedience in the past, she had never trained a therapy dog. Gayle and Rosie went through several trainings and certifications and Rosie has continued to have a positive affect on many lives since then as she and Gayle visit nursing homes and Athena Hospice Care.

“I get the call from a specific patient, but when I go, I end up visiting anybody on the floor that the nurses think would benefit from a visit with a dog,” says Gayle. “It brings a smile to their faces—the patients as well as the staff—and it’s a break from the dreariness of a nursing home situation.”

Gayle, who also has two children and two grandchildren, has been a data warehouse specialist for Blue Cross for 46 years. Much of her time outside of work is spent volunteering at St. John’s and working with Rosie.

“I’ve always been a dog person,” says Gayle. “It is wonderful being able to bring comfort to people who don’t have that much social interaction and do something constructive with the dog besides just spoiling her.”

For information about the Community Supper or to volunteer, call 203-239-0156 or visit www.stjohns-northhaven.org.