Holiday Park VFD in Plum hosts fall fish fry

Volunteers at a Plum fire department hope a fall fish fry will help recoup some funds lost due to the covid-19 pandemic.

A new kitchen was revealed in February at Holiday Park fire hall along Old Abers Creek Road.

Volunteers said the remodeling was done primarily to double the hall’s capabilities for the eight-week long fundraising effort during Lent.

The kitchen closed after only a few weeks, like many fire halls and churches throughout the nation, due to the pandemic mid-March.

Holiday Park President Jackie Taylor said they lost about 50% of the year’s revenues with the hall being closed and subsequent cancellations of other events and rentals.

“I don’t know that I can put a number on it, but it’s a generous part of our income that we have here,” Taylor said. “We usually hold a weekly bingo and do seven weeks of fish fry. We haven’t had bingo since March. We’re hoping to recoup a little bit, get some fundraising generated again.”

The kitchen was reopened Friday with new safety precautions and a limited menu.

“We know how to run a successful fish fry, but it’s like we’re starting over again because we have to adapt to a new way of running it with new limits and restrictions,” said Capt. John Scalamogna, one of the organizers. “We ask everyone to bear with us while we adapt to the changes. It’s still the same product, but different circumstances right now.”

The fire trucks were out of the bays as volunteers used the space to take orders and offer some indoor dining with social distancing. Meals were delivered to residents in the Holiday Park neighborhood.

All volunteers wore masks and all food preparers wore both face coverings and gloves.

Food included fried fish sandwiches, pierogies, mac’n cheese, coleslaw, fries and chicken tenders.

Scalamogna said they planned for about 450 meals, and had about 350 served within the first few hours.

“We’re busier than we expected,” Scalamogna said. “We were able to meet the regulations and able to get staff in-house to make this happen, along with help from the local Masons lodge.”

Taylor said they received a lot of positive feedback.

Jackson Wagner, 12, and his brother Ethan Wagner, 11, were among the younger supporters.

“The fries are delicious,” Jackson said. “This is very wholesome.”

The boys were accompanied by their parents and other siblings.

Ethan said he loves fish frys no matter what the season.

“I don’t really care about the time of year as long as they have fish or ‘fries — I am ‘down,’” he said.

Taylor and Scalamogna said the department will evaluate the event and may have another one next month.

More information about the department and its events can be found at holidayparkvfd.org.