WAHPETON -- Over Christmas break, the North Dakotas State College of Science basketball teams return about a week and a half before second semester classes start in order to resume practices and games.  

Because the campus dining center is shut-down between semesters, the teams eat in local restaurants during much of this time.  However, some individuals and groups in the community take it upon themselves to host the players and coaches for a meal. Evergreen United Methodist Church in Wahpeton is happy to be one of these groups.  

The Evergreen UMC hospitality team organizes the event, held this year on Wednesday, January 2nd: turkeys are cooked by one family, gravy is made by a couple of women, stuffing is made by several folks, potatoes are peeled and mashed by others - and the rest of the congregation is invited to join in by bringing a potluck item to complete the feast.  

Evergreen's fellowship hall fills up, good food is eaten, and the players and coaches introduce themselves.  (This year several members of the men's team helped minimize leftovers by filling to-go boxes and the women's team stuck around to help clean up!)

Rev. Jenny Hallenbeck, pastor at Evergreen UMC shared, “As the pastor at Evergreen, my favorite thing about this event is that I just get to show-up, give thanks to God before the meal, and then have fun chatting with our guests.  I'm so grateful to the folks who got this going years ago because we all look forward to it every year!”