[The perpetrator of the crime referenced below, Dylann Roof, was recently convicted and sentenced to death. Let us focus on a more positive side of this story.]
As the rest of the nation was astounded by the sweet healing that started immediately after the tragic shooting of nine black church members (June,’15) by a white supremacist in Charleston, S. C. something else involving sweet love was taking place in far-away Minnesota.
As reported in the Minneapolis StarTribune (8-19-15), members of the Calvary Lutheran Church in Golden Valley (a suburb of Mpls.) organized a pie-baking event, with support from the G. V. Community Foundation. They were intent on bringing their love through pies, to be delivered to the Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston.
And these were not your ordinary apple pies. No, they were sweet potato pies—so important to the southern and African-American cultures. Over fifty pies were delivered directly to the Bible study group who tragically lost nine members. But what do a bunch of Scandinavians know about sweet-potato pie? Reports are they tasted terrific (“best since mom’s”), although maybe the extra love behind them made them taste extra sweet to the biased taste testers.
The response of the church community was most positive and overwhelming, with one church member calling the pies “food for the soul.” Local media even covered the event the day of the delivery. A Charleston Council member was a direct recipient.
The driving force behind this effort was Rose McGee, a retired educator, who believes in the special value of baked goods in human relations. (She has delivered a “TED” talk on the power of pies.) She commented that the recipients “recognized the power and love that was demonstrated.”
Without a doubt, Love Lived Large in this extraordinary pie-making effort. But it was just a small piece of the love that abounded throughout the Charleston community in the weeks and months that followed. A grateful nation, so weary of the tragedies in Ferguson, MO, has watched in amazement.