As you all know by now I am so excited about annual conference and meeting everyone. But I have to be honest, I live in Montana and there is no soul food restaraunts and I am rarely home to cook. So I am hoping that at annual conference this serious issue of soul food will be addressed. Now I know many of you take our good food for granted but when you live in Montana it is hard to get our food. I must say the supermarkets were so wonderful that when I asked them to stock collard greens and mustard greens they did! Before that we had to drive over a mountain pass 300 miles round trip to get them. One last note, I have a black friend who lives near Yellowstone National Park and he order chiterlings (chitlins) over the internet from Chicago. And NO! I am not that desperate. So PLEASE tell me Annual Conference is also a time for good eating. I love you all and thanks for keeping me connected to the rest of the world.

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

Answers

Let us hope that the pastor of the Host church in San Diego sees your interest in the food that will be prepared for the upcoming Annual Conference. At the last Annual Conference at Brookins AME Church, Los Angeles, we were treated to scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, GRITS,and biscuits for breakfast, how does that sound to you? For lunch we had fried cat fish, smothered cabbage, one day they said we had ox tails, I missed that because I wanted to see the Crenshaw Shopping Center, where Magic Johnson has his theater, what I am trying to assure is that every effort will be made to have some of "our" food for you, if not, let's pray there will plenty of "Soul Food" eating places to try out.

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

Rev. Rogers, I am in the Philadelphia Conference and last year we had a spectacular feast. We had fried whiting, fried chicken, collard greens, asparagus, roast beef, candied yams, corn bread, the cakes, the pies, etc. and on one day, a myriad of Chinese food. It was wonderful. I cannot remember all the food we had, but I do remember I gained around 5 lbs. What a time! What a time! God bless.

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

My Sister Denise,

You can indeed travel on your belly at an A.M.E. Annual conference. I can testify to the accolades presented just ahead of me by Sister Mary, since I too am a member of the Philadelphia Annual Conference of the First Episcopal District. We call ourselves the "Mother" conference since it was the first Conference established once the church was established. And you do know that "Mom" does things right!!!

Mother Bethel was the host church for last year's Annual Conference, so you had the Mother Church hosting the Mother Conference...well you are starting to get the idea. Rev. Jeffrey Leath tow...(sorry I know good English dictates tore but in this case it has to be tow) things up both on his home turf and the secondary setting for the Conference, 3801 Market Street, in Philadelphia, the homebase.headquarters for the 1st Episcopal District.

3801 Market Street, a striking brick structure in the midst of the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel college seeting is owned by the A.M.E. Church and they now have a caterer there that will take you as far back home as you care to travel. The food was beyond marvelous, it was the type of cooking where you did not want a napkin cause you wanted to lick your fingers. It has everything that Sister Mary outlined above and then some. She missed the ribs and tata salad. This was an annual conference where you were fed from every angle and left full regardless of where you wanted to apply the term....spiritually or physically.

And it was a special conference for me in addition, since it was the conference that A.M.E. Today was formally recognized and made a work of the conference. It was Bishop's Cousins final conference with us and making A.M.E. Today official was one of his final legislative acts!!!

I wish I could join you at your annual conference, and in truth, you never can tell where I may pop up!!! But if your annual conference is like most, food will not be a problem, only a linger treat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

Our Annual Conference will be in Tacoma this year. I am just drooling reading about all the good food. After reading what everyone wrote I see I need to buy a wardrobe a size larger so that I will have something to wear home. And Rev. John congratulations on your recognition of AME Today at last years annual conference. Soul food is "food for the soul" for our people were given the parts of the animals that were thrown away. We took what was rejected and transformed into a delicasy! I think of Jesus always when I think of Soul food for he took a people who were oppressed and transformed us all with his love, no matter what race we are!

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

Rev. Rogers, I'm from the eigthth district. I leave in Horn Lake, Mississippi. Oh what a feast.From collard greens to Pig ears, hot water corn bread and blackeyed peas. scrabble eggs, biscuits and gray sauges, bacon and fried smoke sauges. Oh I hope you could come and visit us. You can't worry about your weight here..

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

Rev. Rogers, I'm from the eigthth district. I live in Horn Lake, Mississippi. Oh what a feast.From collard greens to Pig ears, hot water corn bread and blackeyed peas. scrabble eggs, biscuits and gray sauges, bacon and fried smoke sauges. Oh I hope you could come and visit us. You can't worry about your weight here..

-- Anonymous, February 22, 2001

FOOD! WOW, that is one of my favorites. In the New York Conference the meals are always great, the churchs in Brooklyn and Harlem always prepare some of the best food, you name it we have it. From the wonderful fried chicken & fish of brooklyn, to the smothered anything in Harlem, to the homemade chocolate cakes, sweet potatoe pies, etc. Our Annual Conference is April 24-28 in Jamaica, NY at Mt. Moriah AME and co-host Allen Catherdal. Come and visit!

-- Anonymous, February 27, 2001

Sister Truddle, what is hot water cornbread? I never heard cornbread described that way before. Thanks.

-- Anonymous, February 27, 2001

I am printing out all the food that has been posted thus far so I can show my doctor. I am diabetic, he is my dear friend and I think I will invite him and his wife who is a nurse to come to Annual Conference. I must we have six monts of winter here in Montana, and just thinking food at Annual Conference is keeping me warm. Oh, my daughter doesn't eat pork and she love greens but she is concerned that there will be pork in everything. We are so excited!!!

-- Anonymous, February 28, 2001

Collard greens are good without pork or meat. I prepare them with green peppers, hot pepper, Vegit seasonings, onions, pitch of sugar and a little salt. When serving, I cut up fresh tomatoes and place them on top. They are delicious served this way. On don't forget the cornbread and pot liquor. Sister Denise, we put too much fat in our food. I simply don't eat out anymore:-(...

In Love and Light, Brenda

-- Anonymous, February 28, 2001

Brenda my daughter send her thanks to you! I am going to make some greens this weekend using your receipe. I also make them with smoked turkey. I agree with you about the fat content in food, As a rule I don't eat pork either. Only because when I was a child we ate so much pork, I vowed that as an adult I would not eat any more. Love ya,

-- Anonymous, February 28, 2001

Rev. Rogers,

I will ask some of Pastor Williams' licentiates on Saturday about your request. I live in Orange County (3% African American), and attend First Church - Los Angeles (about a 75-90 minute drive one way). When we want soul food, we pick it up on the way home from church.

We could always drive 20 minutes south and try real Mexican cuisine.

See you at Annual Conference!

-- Anonymous, March 20, 2001