Annual fall heritage potluck unites parish

By Sam Genovese
For The Catholic Week
DOTHAN — About 200 eager parishioners of diverse backgrounds crowded the St. Columba parish hall on Nov. 19 for an annual celebration of the nations. 
Attendees brought native dishes representing their nationality or family origin and placed stickers on one of two large maps — of the world and of the U.S. —to indicate their place of birth. A running slide show featured scenic vistas of the nations and cities lands represented by the event.
German sauerkraut and spareribs, British amaretto bread pudding, Dutch cheese and meat pies, Italian caponata and pizza, Sicilian rigatoni with meatballs, Vietnamese spring rolls, Mexican tacos and tamales, Slovakian pirophy (pierogies), Scottish shepherd’s pie, Spanish magdelenas (lemon cupcakes), Hungarian paprikash (chicken and dumplings), South American yuca with onions and carrots, and numerous dishes from the American south were just some of the delicacies that diners enjoyed. 
Dancers in colorful native costumes whirled to cultural songs from Chiapas and Jalisco, Mexico, to appreciative cheers and applause.  
Parish manager Eric Brickman organized the event and Social Chairman Jan Emfinger worked with a crew, including Jan Mueller, Beth Mueller, Leticia Gordillo, Beth Slayback and Lee Zdenowski, to festoon the hall with national symbols and flags and decorate the tables with a colorful harvest theme. Flo Gordillo compiled the slide show and Yeye Galloway led the entertainment and coached the dancers.