By JEFF BOBO
jbobo@timesnews.net
Photo by Jeff Bobo —jbobo@timesnews.net
Stella Gudger, executive director of the Price Public School Community Center in Rogersville, is excited about the 9th annual Soul Food Dinner fund-raiser to be hosted by the facility on Oct. 12.
ROGERSVILLE — One of the favorite events kicking off next week’s Rogersville Heritage Days is the Friday night “Soul Food Dinner” hosted by the historic Price Public School Community Center.
The $25-per-plate dinner Oct. 12 is an important fund-raiser for the former segregated school turned historic landmark, community center and museum.
This will be the ninth Soul Food Dinner held since renovation of the 89-year-old PPSCC facility was completed in 2003.
PPSCC Executive Director Stella Gudger said it’s also the most significant event hosted by the school to date because it is the first since improvements to the Swift Memorial College Museum located in the southeast wing of the school were completed in March.
In 2009, the PPSCC received a $3,000 contribution from the Tennessee Valley Authority to help pay for a renovation of the museum.
The museum tells the story of Rogersville’s segregated Swift Memorial College, which operated as an African-American college on the north side of town from 1883 until 1955 and continued on as a segregated high school until 1963. Today the campus belongs to the Hawkins County school system and is home to the system’s central office.
“We are so proud of our new museum,” Gudger said Wednesday. “People who hadn’t been to our museum before have been impressed because it does look like a real museum. But people who had been to the museum before, and then visited since the improvements were completed, have just been floored by the new look.
“It’s something that everyone should see, especially people who are interested in that period of our history.”
The Oct. 12 dinner begins at 4 p.m. and continues with hourly seatings until 8 p.m.
The menu includes beef brisket, pinto beans, corn bread, buttered potatoes, cabbage and collards, candied yams, corn, a variety of desserts, tea and coffee.
Entertainment will be provided by guitarist and vocalist Tommy White.
Tickets are $25 each, but groups can buy a table for six for $125.
Each seating has a maximum capacity of 60 people. Gudger said the 7 p.m. seating is almost full, but all other hours still have several openings.
“This is the biggest fund-raiser we have every year to help cover the operational costs of Price Public and the Swift museum,” Gudger said. “Last year we had close to 200 people, but I’m shooting for 300 people because we’ve got a matching grant from the Modern Woodmen of America. They will match up to $2,500 for the event. What that means is if you pay $25 for a meal, what you’re really doing is providing us with $50 thanks to this grant.”
Gudger added, “We do get some funding from the city and county, but it’s not nearly enough, although we do appreciate it. Our monthly expenses run about $1,500, and we collect donations, but we don’t charge for use of the facility. We want to make it accessible to everybody in the community whether you’re rich or poor, and it is being used quite a bit.”
All seating for the dinner must be reserved in advance. To reserve a seat call the PPSCC during business hours at (423) 272-9919.
