As I travel around the stake, a common phrase hear is “Feed the missionaries”. When I was a missionary in Taiwan, we hardly ever had dinner appointments. We went back to our apartment every day for lunch and dinner. When we had a dinner appointment (maybe once every couple of weeks), it was a huge thrill. I don’t know if feeding the missionaries was a thing back then, or if it is today all over the world, but at the very least, it seems to be in North America.
One of the challenges is actually scheduling the dinners. Most wards I’ve been in use a paper calendar that goes around the priesthood quorums and in Relief Society. I suspect what happens is that the husband thinks, “I’ll leave it for my wife to sign up” and the wife thinks, “I’ll check with my husband on the date before signing up” and then nothing happens.
When I was visiting a ward in North Carolina recently, they use SignUp Genius.
What is SignUpGenius?
If you are a group leader and find yourself organizing volunteers, meals, service projects, or events… we want to make your life a lot simpler! Now you can coordinate it all online… FREE!
I didn’t have a chance to ask anyone how it works out for them, but it seems like a great idea. There was a link shown in the weekly bulletin that members could type out. Of course it would be easy enough for various leaders to email around the link to members as needed.
Regardless of how it gets arrange, I full support feeding the missionaries. They are fine young men and women who are trying their best to do the Lord’s work. Inviting them over for a meal seems to be the least we can do…
