WESTMINSTER — Some 11,000 bowls of soup later, Laura Leonard and Nancy Dalzell are hanging up their ladles and doffing their aprons.
For the past four winters, the pair prepared and served three soups each Wednesday at the Westminster Congregational Church, welcoming all comers for a simple soup and bread lunch for a freewill donation.
Most recently, patrons have numbered 40 or 50 a week, coming from surrounding towns as word of the good, homemade soups and the convivial atmosphere have filtered out into the community.
Tomato cheddar, Italian wedding, corn chowder, French onion, chicken stew, tortellini, split pea… the memories will be savored until November.
Dalzell explained that the soup Wednesday began when the women became aware that Our Place Drop-in Center in Bellows Falls was not open on Wednesdays, a situation that has since changed as Our Place is now open daily. But the habit of Wednesday soup in Westminster kept the crowds coming.
This year's Wednesday lunches ended March 27 with a potluck lunch and a hearty thank you to both the women and their helpers, Sierra Sylvester and Karen Rumrill. Dalzell and Leonard were also recently honored by their hometown as Westminster Citizens of the Year.
The women say they plan to share their soup knowledge with a few members of the community who have come forward to keep the Wednesday soup tradition stirring.
“There's a plan in the works to have others continue next year,” Dalzell said. “And we hope to be able to make a soup each month.”