LINDSBORG — The Bethany Lutheran Church Sesquicentennial committee will present a smörgåsbord lunch to help fight poverty in McPherson County.

The lunch, in conjunction with a basket raffle and a silent auction, is scheduled to begin at noon on June 16 in the fellowship hall.  The mission chosen to benefit from the proceeds of the fundraiser is STEPmc, Steps to End Poverty of McPherson County.

STEPmc believes the responsibility for poverty and prosperity both, rests in the hands of individuals, societies, institutions and communities alike.  The model for helping pull the 8.3 percent of the McPherson county population out of poverty and into prosperity works by building up strong social, financial, and emotional capital and pairing families with trained mid- to high-income community volunteers.  

Since 2010 (the beginning of STEPmc) 31 families have been lifted out of poverty with an average income gain of 258 percent.  Weekly meetings in are held in both McPherson and Lindsborg, begin with a meal, and provide child care free of charge during the program.  

Representatives of STEPmc are scheduled to speak about the work the organization does on May 26 at the 9 a.m forum in the fellowship hall at Bethany Lutheran Church, 320 N Main, Lindsborg.

Amy Roraback, chair of Bethany Lutheran’s 150th committee said, “We’re really excited about this, we’ve already seen items come in from artists like Carla Griffith’s Wilson and Ron Michaels.  It’s a blessing living in a community like Lindsborg, people are so willing to step up and lend a hand.”

Tickets for the smörgåsbord are $20 a piece (children 11 & under are free), the menu will include traditional Swedish dishes like potato sausage, Swedish meatballs, dill potatoes, Swedish cucumber salad, rye bread and ostkaka (a Swedish cheesecake dessert).

Items up for auction already include original art from Carla Griffith’s Wilson depicting notable Lindsborg scenes, quilts made by Carolyn Gibson, and a 1921 McPherson County atlas donated by Chet and Jeanette Peterson.