Where the Wild Things Gather

Once each year, things get really wild at the Racine Christian Church. Thanks to the outdoorsmen who attend, the church rolls out a banquet which features a wild game menu.

It's not only the good tasting things that make this night such a fun event, it's the atmosphere. A few hours before the feast begins, outdoorsmen, along with a couple of taxidermists, create what looks like an outdoor museum. Along the walls of the church gymnasium, the men set up beautiful wildlife mounts which everyone enjoys. The displays include everything from a fish to a fox to a raccoon.

But the important thing is the dinner, with church members bringing such dishes as buffalo, trout, and squirrel, all served up to be the envy of the finest New York chef.

Church member Bryan Gayer says the success of the dinner goes to the entire congregation. "I would guess we have about 25 members who bring the food," he said. "It's a fun time. This is the night we all kinda let our hair down and just have a good time."

Gayer not only provides some of the food for the big feed, he is in charge of door prizes. "We have really good support from local merchants. Most of the prizes are outdoor related. I would say that ninety percent of our members are deer hunters."

The dinner is actually more than just a meal. According to Gayer, "We like to do this at church so everyone knows that hunters and sportsmen can have fun in a Christian way. This shows that we don't have to sit around the campfire and drink a six-pack of beer to have fun."

But, of course, it's not only sportsmen who come to the dinner. "We welcome everyone," Gayer said. "But there is a lot of hunting and fishing talk. Anyone who likes to do something, likes to talk about it. Hunters are no different."

This year's menu featured many version of chili. Most of the meat in the chilies was venison, but there was also a buffalo chili, and one of the most popular items was biscuits and squirrel gravy, which was prepared by Dennis Cole.

Fish is another popular meal. Steve Ruzic, a dedicated fisherman, had some mountain rainbow trout.

Because there are so many deer hunters in the congregation, venison was the most available meat, served mostly in chili form, but also in tacos.

Tony Sage, another church member-hunter, works hard on making the dinner a success.

"I absolutely love doing this," Sage said. "This is the second year for me."

Sage, who planned to bring wild turkey and venison, says this is a good way to invite fellow hunters to church. "Last year we had a few speakers, just some of the hunters, who told a few hunting and fishing stories. I think everyone enjoyed that," he said.

This year, the owner of Outdoors Indoors Taxidermy in Pittsburg, KS was invited to attend and talk about hunting, fishing and taxidermy.

But, in the end, everyone was looking forward to supper and having a chance to try several different kinds of wild game.

"We ran out of food last year," Sage said, "so this year we're doubling up on what we bring."