A Lenten tradition on Fridays in Springfield

The fish may come from Norway waters by way of a Russian trawler, Chinese fishermen and a Canadian fish broker, but everything else Friday night was local, local, local.
http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20120402/NEWS02/704029955

Published April 2, 2012 in the Rutland Herald
A Lenten tradition on Fridays in Springfield

By SUSAN SMALLHEER
Staff Writer

SPRINGFIELD — The fish may come from Norway waters by way of a Russian trawler, Chinese fishermen and a Canadian fish broker, but everything else Friday night was local, local, local.

St. Mary’s Catholic Church put on its fifth Lenten fish fry dinner of the season Friday, with the last supper slated for Good Friday.

The church started holding the popular Friday dinners several years ago, said church member and cook Michael Knoras. The dinners have only grown in popularity, and on Friday night there wasn’t an empty seat in the Nolin-Murray Center, which is located next to the white marble church.

“We’ve been doing it since 1998,” said Knoras, who noted that in the beginning the dinner would be held either Friday or Saturday.

“We’ve been fishing the Black River ever since,” he joked, as members of the church’s teen group looked worried.

The tradition of fish on Fridays is a long one for older Vermont Catholics, Knoras said, and while times have changed, the tradition of fish on Fridays during Lent is strong.

“We do the Stations of the Cross, but the dinner is open to everybody,” he said. Church members and volunteers from the community help put on the dinner, he said.

“The fish was excellent,” said Kamelia Wierzbicki of Proctorsville. “I really like baked fish,” she said.

Knoras said the Springfield dinner was unique compared to other Lenten fish fries: He only uses haddock, not the traditional cod, which any New Englander will tell you is in short supply. The hungry get a few choices: the haddock can be fried or baked with lemon pepper, and you can choose between french fries or baked potato.

The cole slaw — a salad of shredded cabbage and carrots (“no onion,” Knoras said sternly) — is topped with a special creamy dressing. A changing dessert completes the menu. In addition, there is sour cream and tartar sauce and for beverages coffee, tea and pink lemonade.

Last week, dessert was lemon squares, but cherry crumble is on the list for the church’s cooks next Friday, said Deb Ankuda, who was busy getting desserts ready for the 200 or so diners.

Knoras, who in his spare time away from the church kitchen is a member of the Springfield Select Board, said he got the fish’s provenance from the outside of the box the fish came in. Now, it just rolls off his tongue like a favorite song.

Money from the dinners goes to “keep the lights on,” Knoras said, and also fund community dinners, such as the regular Thanksgiving, Christmas and now Easter dinners the church puts on for the community.

Three years ago the church added an Easter dinner to its tradition of Thanksgiving and Christmas, he said, and it will feature ham, potatoes, peas and pearl onions, cole slaw and a dessert of either cake or brownie, he said. The dinner is open and free to the public and will be served from 1 to 3 p.m. on Easter Sunday at the Nolin-Murray Center.

Knoras said he was baptized at St. Patrick’s Church in Springfield when he was a baby. That church no longer exists, and now he is one of 400 members of St. Mary’s.

Next Friday’s fish fry starts at 5 p.m. and is served until 7 p.m. Adults are $12, seniors are $10, and children between the ages of 6 and 12 are $4.

Michael Knoras of Springfield, a longtime member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Springfield, tends to the fry basket Friday night during the church’s Fish Fry dinner on the Fridays during Lent.
Photo: SUSAN SMALLHEER / STAFF PHOTO