Part of church administration often involves church food service, which may include preparing supper on Wednesday nights or for special church events.  Also, some churches have full-time paid church food service workers and others have volunteers. 

To address the issues surrounding church food service, the SC Baptist Convention Church Administration and Buildings Office sponsored a Feeding the Multitudes Conference on Feb. 12 at the convention building.

More than 50 full-time paid and volunteer church food service workers attended the conference, where part of the day was spent touring and sampling foods at SYSCO Food Services in Columbia.  Established in 1970, SYSCO is the number one food service provider for churches.

Several of SYSCO’s representatives partnered with the SC Baptist Convention to provide the Feeding the Multitudes Conference.

The first session began at 9 a.m. with Duane Davis, SYSCO Business Resource manager, who explained that the face of church food service is changing. 

“We no longer prepare and serve.  We are now responsible for creating a complete dining experience,” Davis said.  He also suggested that churches develop a mission statement and vision for their church food service, whether it is led by employees or volunteers.

The next session, led by Will Powell, SYSCO Supplies and Equipment specialist, was about ServSafe.  As a certified ServSafe trainer, Powell explained the safety precautions and techniques to use when handling and serving food.

Robert Grant, director of the Church Administration and Buildings Office, led the third session in which he discussed employment procedures and policies for church food service staff.  Grant encouraged conference attendees to establish qualifications and position descriptions even for churches that use volunteer church service workers.

In closing, Grant said, “Church food service is the gift of hospitality, not a job.  It’s a calling.”

For more information about the Feeding the Multitudes Conference or church food service, contact the SC Baptist Convention Church Administration and Buildings Office at (800) 723-7242, extension 4900, email karenprevatte@scbaptist.org or visit online at www.scbaptist.org.