PINCKNEY, MI - A local tradition for over 25 years, the Lenten fish fry dinners at St. Mary’s Catholic School and Parish in Pinckney have morphed into something a bit different this year. Still featuring their famous fish and sides, St. Mary’s has renamed them “Drive By Fish Fry” and have brought in a whole new crew of volunteers to run them.
“We knew we needed creativity and open minds this year without many of our regular volunteers and with the added challenges,” said St. Mary’s parishioner Bob Phipps. He and his wife, Cathy, have been helping to run the St. Mary’s fish dinners for 15 years. “We had to account for everything from drive-thru traffic flow to Plexiglass, and even childcare to recruit new volunteers,” he added. “We tackled all this while making sure to maintain our primary goal, which is to serve a great dinner for a good cause. It’s been uplifting to see our school community step up, and we are coming out stronger for it.”
The “Drive By Fish Fry” started this year on Feb. 19, and runs every Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. through March 26. This year it is carry-out only, and the organization is expecting to serve around 500 dinners each week. Typically, they draw guests from both near and far, and have had fish fry aficionados come from all over the world, including Canada, Ireland, Mexico, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Ireland. According to Phipps, “this year we are grateful to just feed our regulars.”
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We caught up with some of the crew at St. Mary’s, and learned all about the changes they’ve implemented this year to serve their fish fry safely and efficiently, while still having a great time and raising money for their school. You can check out our interview with Bob Phipps, and Chef Amy Berry below.
“We’re used to having a social interaction here,” Phipps explained. “We’ve had to morph into trying to move it more to take out situation. It’s unique for us. It’s challenging for us. It’s something we haven’t done before. We’re learning, and I figure by dinner six we should be pretty good at it.”
Bob and Cathy Phipps used to own several pharmacies in the area, and looked at the fish fry as a “way to stay involved in the community,” he said. Over the last 15 years, the couple has volunteered each and every Lenten Friday. “There’s a couple of reasons,” Bob Phipps said, explaining why they continue to be involved. “There’s a lot of people who used to work for me, a lot of customers I had, and patients we had. It was actually kind of nice. I retired and I needed something to get involved with. This was great, and very rewarding. The people here are tremendous.”
“You have to stay connected, and you have to stay involved,” Phipps said.
Phipps certainly does continue to stay involved in the Pinckney community. He’s using his pharmacist background right now to help the Livingston County Health Department administer the Covid-19 vaccine, and he’s using some of the challenges they’ve overcome at the fish fry in his work at the health department.
“It’s the same type of principle we are using this year,” Phipps said. “Trying to get people moving through. And to be honest with you, this is completely different for us. In our previous years, this (the fish fry) was one of our largest social events we would have every year. We would have six dinners each year, and this building is pretty big, and it would be absolutely crammed full of people.”
Phipps shared some ideas with the health department, and then he in turn stole a few ideas from them on how to get people moving. “It’s kind of what we are learning on the fly,” he said.
A fried fish dinner from St. Mary's Catholic School and Parish in Pinckney.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
The transformation of the fish fry into a total take-out endeavor was born of necessity. The pandemic shut down took away St. Mary’s ability to hold their annual charity auction, which typically raises tens of thousands of dollars to provide tuition scholarships to students. St. Mary’s School Principal Veronica Kinsey, whom Phipps described as “a saint,” reached out to him to see if he and the parish Men’s Club, would be willing to work together to continue to put on the fish dinners.
The Men’s Club’s memberships skews on the older side, with many members in their 70s and 80s, Phipps said. Having them volunteer this year was out of the question, due to the high risk of COVID-19 to this age group. Kinsey suggested that they work with school parents, and also students, to staff the dinners. The Men’s Club quickly agreed to this, and to giving all the proceeds this year back to the school. It’s a new situation that has worked out famously so far.
“People are more energetic than I wish I’d ever had been,” Phipps said. “They’ve been incredible. Everything that we’ve asked them to do, they do it times ten. It’s been an amazing marriage. It’s kind of energizing.”
The students from St. Mary’s are excited to participate each week. Students in grades 5 through 8 act as food runners from the kitchen to the cars waiting outside. “Our students are pretty much running the drive thru for us,” Berry said. “Running to cars, delivering food, having that aspect of interaction with the customers and the community.”
“These people are amazing,” Phipps said. He added with a laugh “They put up with me.”
Volunteers at St. Mary's School and Parish in Pinckney sport their special fish fry hats.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
Chef Amy Berry typically runs the school cafeteria at St. Mary’s. She is a professional chef, who used to work at the Detroit Athletic Club. She was tapped to help out at the fish fry this year, creating a new system in the kitchen that would not just run smoothly, but also be able to pump out hundreds and hundreds of fresh meals. No big deal for this pro.
“I felt quite comfortable with it,” Berry said about the changes they needed to implement. “Bob and Cathy, who have been here for so long, have made it easier for me, stopping in. There’s been some tweaking we’ve had to do, but there are some great minds working together. We’re putting out a good meal.”
There are two options for fish dinners at St. Mary’s in Pinckney. You can get the classic “Fried on Friday”, which features fried pollock, french fries, mac and cheese, coleslaw and dessert. Or you can select the “Bated and Baked” which comes with lightly seasoned baked cod fillet, au gratin potatoes (GF), mac and cheese, coleslaw and dessert. Dessert this year is a snickerdoodle bar, that Berry says is “just enough” to finish your meal with. Both options are $10.
“This is a handed-down recipe for our hand battered fish,” Berry said. “It’ll honestly knock your socks off. You don’t have to dig for your fish, it’s light, it’s wonderful, and easy to make.”
New this year as well is St. Mary’s fish supplier. They’ve switched it up to use Detroit-based Caramagno Foods, a family-owned business that has been distributing fish since 1910.
“I hope to serve a great fish dinner that becomes a destination for good food, good people and a worthy cause,” said Berry. “The Lenten fish fry is up against more competition since every restaurant in town is primarily take out. We are ready for it. As they say, I’m ‘St. Mary proud’ that we came together to overcome the challenges of our time.”
Berry said that after years of working in professional kitchens “there’s something real special about being able to volunteer your time and give back. To me, it rubs just a little extra special.”
“This year has obviously been unique,” said Phipps. “But we’ve tried to make the best of it.”
Volunteers prepare fish at St. Mary's Catholic School and Church in Pinckney.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
Volunteers run your fish dinner directly to your car at St. Mary's Catholic School and Parish in Pinckney.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
A "Bated and Baked" fish dinner with au gratin potatoes from St. Mary's School and Parish in Pinckney.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
St. Mary Catholic School and Parish
10601 Dexter-Pinckney Rd, Pinckney, MI 48169
For more info: Facebook or https://stmarypinckney.org/school/
Fish Fry Drive By is held Fridays from 4-7pm. This year, the dates are March 5, 12,19,26.
Dinners are $10, cash, check or credit cards accepted.
Volunteers deliver food direct to your car at St. Mary's School and Parish in Pinckney.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.
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The Link LonkMarch 04, 2021 at 01:39AM
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It’s a ‘Drive By Fish Fry’ this year at St. Mary’s in Pinckney - MLive.com
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