In a scene that would have made Henry Ford proud, approximately 60 volunteers working with machine-like efficiency packaged 16,000 meals in less than two hours Saturday, Nov. 12, at the Arbutus Recreation Center.
Divided into three groups, the volunteers gathered at 9 a.m., had a brief training session, combined the ingredients, portioned them into meals and packaged them for shipping.
The meals are fortified with 21 vitamins and minerals and packed with 11 grams of protein. The Philadelphia chapter of the nonprofit Stop Hunger Now will ship the packages to school feeding programs and orphanages around the world.
"It went really well. I think everybody really felt a lot fulfillment out of it," said Joe Wickless, the event's project leader. "These were just regular people who realize what they have and how much they have to share."
At 9:29 a.m., a volunteers hit a gong for the first time, signaling that the group had packaged 1,000 meals.
The gong rang every three to seven minutes after that to signal the packaging of another 1,000 meals. The final gong rang shortly before 11 a.m. when the final meal was packaged.
Stop Hunger Now, which has 11 chapters across the country that have combined to package more than 55 million meals since 1998, provided the food at a cost of 25 cents per meal, said Wickless, a life-long area resident.
Through the fundraising efforts of Wickless and fellow members of St. Charles of Brazil, an independent Catholic church in the area with about 30 members, the group raised $4,000.
Last month, Wickless, set his initial goal at $2,500, the minimum necessary to have the event and called packaging 15,000 meals a "stretch goal."
Throughout the event, people ran from one station to the next delivering ingredients, such as textured vegetable protein or long grain rice, and moving finished products to the next stage of assembly.
"I just thought it was a great opportunity for our family to help others," said Denise Rubeling, an Arbutus resident who attended the event with her husband, Chris, daughter, Abbey, 13, and son, Aaron, 8.
"It's a great experience," Rubeling said, as she poured a cup of rice into a bag.
Mary Harrison, an Arbutus native now living in Westminster, said she came out because she wanted to play a role in helping the children these meals will feed.
Harrison noted, though, that she was a bit skeptical about whether they would actually complete the project in less than two hours.
"This is pretty amazing," Harrison said as she packaged prepared meals in a cardboard box. "It was interesting to see how it was all going to come together."
Seeing how the project would be completed also piqued the interest of Catonsville resident Carol Zeller.
"It's neat the way they have it set up and organized," Zeller said as she packaged meals. "They really have it down to a science. It's fun."
Andrew Sullivan, a program manager for Stop Hunger Now, said the meals will reach the people in need within one or two months.
Sullivan added that it is still not known where the food will be shipped, but he will email the volunteers when he knows the destination in a few weeks.
At the end of the event, Sullivan cooked one of the meals to allow the volunteers to sample.
"In the state that we packaged it, it was actually pretty bland," Wickless said. "Wherever they are, they'll usually add in stuff.
"If they're in Africa, they'll add in some things to make it taste like their food."
Wickless said it's likely he will organize another of these events.
Perhaps a familiarity with the project will result in more meals being packaged.
"The first time you do it you don't really know what the long poles and the tents are," Wickless said. "It really wasn't all the much work really. It was a lot of fun."