On March 20, volunteers and staff from Mountain Family Center and Grand County Advocates helped serve a meal as part of the Cranmer Chapel Dinners in Winter Park.

What began as a humble effort to bring food to workers at Winter Park Resort decades ago, has now expanded to serve all community members in the Fraser Valley. During this dry winter, the Cranmer Chapel Dinners have helped support both seasonal employees and longtime locals.

The effort has been led by The Episcopal Church of St. John the Baptist since the 1990s.

Ned Wallace, who organizes the dinners with Rev. Matthew Frey, said that they typically serve around 200 people each night. They also offer a Thanksgiving meal, which is their biggest turnout. Wallace has helped cook and serve the dinners since the tradition first began. The newly remodeled kitchen is named for his late wife Janet, who worked alongside him at the dinners for decades.

The dinners have ended for this year, but will start back up again next Thanksgiving.

Culture and creativity during Women’s History Month

March was Women’s History Month — a time to celebrate the strength, resilience, and creativity of women. The Center’s Grand Latin group and Advocates partnered to host series of events focused on learning and connection. These included three classes held in English and Spanish on women’s and infant’s health.

Silvina Spatocco, Grand Latin and family support services coordinator, said that the informative class “Let’s Talk About Women’s Health” with Dr. Eliza Buyers was the most well-attended.

As the culmination of the series, the two organizations hosted “Grand Women: A Gallery of Local Women’s History and Creativity” on March 27.

Visitors at the gallery in Granby Library learned about women-owned businesses, from Pink Cakes in Granby, to Simple Coffee in Fraser. They viewed locally made artwork and read about notable women in history.

Spatocco added that the event was a success and showed attendees “all the women who helped build Grand County.”