NEWS

Students go fish before going on trip

David Berman
dberman2@chillicothegazette.com

CHILLICOTHE – For a group of teenagers, giving up their cellphones for three hours probably feels like 40 days.

But that’s exactly what Bishop Flaget School’s seventh- and eighth-graders agree to do every Friday night during Lent so they can focus instead on serving fried fish, macaroni and cheese, potato salad, and baked beans for what’s become the biggest fundraiser for their annual educational class trip.

Now in its 15th year, the weekly fish fry at St. Mary Catholic Church has become a go-to destination on Fridays for people observing a Lenten diet as well as those who just enjoy a home-cooked meal.

The massive fryer, which is shielded from the elements by a woodshed, can make about 80 hand-breaded filets at one time. That volume is crucial considering the line often stretches out the door starting at 4 p.m. when the first meals are served.

Except for the actual frying, the students have a hand in every step of the process from preparing the food on Thursdays to serving it on Fridays to cleaning up afterward. Of course, some jobs are less desirable than others.

“No one really wants to be the dishwasher,” said Carli Frey, a seventh-grader.

“That’s my job tonight,” Frey’s classmate, Daniel Haller, said with a twinge of disappointment.

Proceeds from this year’s six fish fry dinners will go to help pay for the middle school students’ four-day trip to Chicago. They’ll hit some museums and Navy Pier, possibly tour Wrigley Field and stop by the University of Notre Dame on their way back, Principal Laura Corcoran said. Last year’s trip took students to New York City.

Students working the dinners also get a free meal at the end of the night, which is a perk in and of itself.

“The fish is really good,” eighth-grader John Slater said.

“Amazingness,” Daniel said of the fried perch.

Kim Hirsch, who has been overseeing the fish fry since 2009, said the students are good helpers.

“They know it’s for their trip and know they’re here to serve the customers. Every once in a while, we have to tell them to stop socializing,” Hirsch said. “By the end of the night, some parents just want to go home, so we have a little more help.”

If you go

Bishop Flaget School’s Lenten fish fry dinner will be offered from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday and March 13, 20 and 27 at St. Mary Catholic Church’s Family Life Center, 40 E. Fourth St. Carryout meals are available.