A History of the Zonta Turkey
Dinner
2017 fundraiser to be held this Sunday
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[November 04, 2017]
LINCOLN
The
Zonta Club of Lincoln was founded in 1957. The club is a member of
Zonta International, a leading global organization of professionals
empowering women worldwide through service and advocacy. Zonta
International has 30,000 members in 67 countries.
In 1965 the eight year old Zonta Club of Lincoln planned a “Zonta
Zupper” for the public to be held on Sunday, November 7th, at the
Knights of Columbus Hall. The club members served a variety of
foods, including turkey. The club charged $1.50 for adults and $1
for children. Approximately 700 people walked up a narrow, enclosed
staircase to the second floor of the building that is now Abe’s
Carmelcorn. The profit that year was $450.
From this humble beginning has emerged the Zonta Turkey Dinner, held
annually on the first Sunday in November. The dinner continued at
the K of C until 1970, when it moved to Carroll Catholic School to
accommodate larger crowds. That year each club member was
responsible for saving five loaves of dried bread, and making two
pies and one cake. In 1972 profits rose to over $1100.
In the 1970’s and 1980’s Zonta Club members were innovative in
making the best use of the school. They set up tables and chairs in
the gym. Food prep started on Wednesday before the dinner. On the
day of the dinner food was kept warm in numerous roasters kept in
separate classrooms. When the electrical fuses began blowing, Harold
Goodman solved the problem by setting up generators in the alley. He
then strung extension cords through the gym door and down the
hallways to the classrooms. In 1981 over 1000 dinners were served.
In 1982 net profits reached $3500.
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Many local people have contributed to our club’s successful dinners.
In 1991 Comstock Bakery allowed the club to use its facilities for
food preparation. In 1992, the day before the dinner, the walk-in
freezer at Carroll Catholic School stopped working. Warren Wendlandt
at Lincoln College rescued and cooked our turkeys and baked the
dressing in his convection ovens.
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In 1993 the Zonta Turkey Dinner moved to its current location,
Lincoln Community High School. The dinner would not be possible without the
assistance of the LCHS cafeteria staff, currently headed by Lori Lawson. They
have guided us to streamline ordering, preparation, and serving, to keep down
costs and decrease wear and tear on our members. We have averaged more than 1000
dinners served each year while utilizing LCHS.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Nov/04/images/ads/current/graue_sda_2016.png)
In 1981 under the leadership of then Zonta Club president, Judy
Awe, the club established a Health Career Scholarship. Profits of our turkey
dinner and funnel cake sales at the Railsplitter Festival would be used to fund
the yearly scholarships. The first year’s scholarship recipient was Dr. Don
Sielaff. The scholarship program was begun to assist local students to achieve
their goals in health careers. However, over the intervening 35 years, the focus
expanded to any post-secondary course of study, including adults returning to
school. As of 2016, the Zonta Club of Lincoln has awarded over 100 individual
scholarships. A listing of previous scholarship recipients will be displayed at
the turkey dinner.
The Zonta Club of Lincoln has contributed to many local organizations over the
almost sixty years we have been active in Lincoln. In recent years we have
donated to Central Illinois Blood Bank, Girls on the Run, Habitat for Humanity,
Head Start, Lincoln/Logan County Food Pantry, and the Pregnancy Resource Center.
With the assistance of Charlie Lee at Lincoln IGA, our club has placed a special
emphasis on donating to the Logan County Court Advocacy program for local
domestic violence victims.
On Sunday, November 5, 2017, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Lincoln Community
High School, the Zonta Club of Lincoln hopes to serve our delicious turkey,
dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, applesauce, cranberry sauce,
and a wide selection of homemade desserts to over 1000 diners again. Contact any
member for tickets or call/text our special Turkey Hotline number 217-871-6457.
Advance tickets are $12 for adults, $6 per child under 12. A limited number of
tickets will be available at the door for $13. The Zonta Club of Lincoln would
like to thank our community for supporting our fundraising efforts for the past
52 years.
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