Peterborough youths support community supper

By DAVID ALLEN

Monadnock Ledger-Transcript

Published: 09-24-2024 1:57 PM

Thanks to a pair of local fifth graders, a room full of guests at a local community supper capped off a recent dinner with an offering made from scratch. As they do once a month, Charlotte Petrone and Annabel Warner, both of Peterborough, headed to Peterborough’s All Saints’ Church after school to prepare for approximately 60 diners the old fashioned way. Their initiative grew out of an interest to do something positive for the community, and has morphed into a regular commitment by the girls at Reynolds Hall across the street from the parish building.

“It feels good to do something good,” said Petrone, wiping her palms on a cooking apron sporting some flour. The girls whipped up “Grandma’s Blueberry Buckle” to finish off the evening fare Tuesday, and not from a mix. “Things taste better when they’re made from scratch,” said Warner, “and it’s more fun to do this as a team.”

Petrone’s family attends All Saints’ and a family conversation after church last year nudged her to think on how she could contribute to the community in some way. “I told my mother I wanted to do something at the supper,”she said. She asked her friend Annabel if she’d like to join her, and since December, the girls have been meeting at the hall shortly after school on a monthly basis to top off the meal with dessert. Raspberry crumble and lemon cake are among the offerings they’ve prepared for all in attendance. Harriet DiCicco and Sue Tavernier help to steer the entire meal to its 5:30 presentation, the run up to which involves lining up cooking teams and grocery shopping. “All cooking and baking is done on the premises,” DiCicco says.

The budding culinarians devote their energies elsewhere as well, spending Wednesday and Friday afternoons practicing with the U12 ConVal Cougars travel soccer team. While there’s no practice on Tuesdays, Petrone and Warner have definite ideas about how to spend that time. “This is way more fun than sitting at home watching TV,” Petrone said. “And you’re doing it with a friend,” Warner added. “That’s really cool.”

The girls haven’t limited their altruism to baking, however. Last summer, they set up a lemonade stand at Putnam Park with the help of Annabel’s younger sister Ellen Warner. In one day they earned $113, and on Tuesday, the three girls made a gift of the funds to the community supper endeavor. Giving seems to be a thread in this group. “If I have clothes I can’t wear or toys I’ve outgrown, I like to give them away,” said Petrone.

The two older girls attend South Meadow School, so what happens when soccer practice there in future years also falls on Tuesdays? “It won’t run all afternoon,” Petrone said, “so we can still come here and help.”