Holy Name Fish Fry

I didn't grow up Catholic. I walked 20-some years through this world without realizing what kind of parties these folks can put on--in church. I'll be the first to admit that Protestants are a bit notorious for being on the stuffy side. Religious differences aside, I think we can all appreciate a good fish fry. Holy Name in Benson hosts a Lenten fest. The people in the above photograph are all tailgating in the parking lot of the church. Let me repeat that: tailgating at church. Serving any sort of alcohol at church comes as a completely new concept to me. My dad used to be a pastor of an evangelical free church in a small town in Nebraska (this was when I was very young), and my parents absolutely did not drink even a sip of any alcoholic substance at any point during this season of their lives. People would have talked, they said. I'll make a point right here to note that I now attend a Protestant church in which this is not at all the case. But still, beer in church is kind of a new thing for me. But it's something I am more than willing to embrace.

See these people below. They are all hauling coolers of beer, chatting it up while waiting to get their food. Here we are in the Holy Name cafeteria. This man is passing out free beer. At church. Granted it was Busch Light, but hey, it's free . Soda, on the other hand, 50 cents.

Holy Name's fish fries are pretty notorious for bringing in probably thousands of people to raise money for the church's grade school. It is insane. The line last week wasn't too bad--we only had to wait 15 minutes. I'm thinking that was because Lent hadn't even started yet. But everyone and their mom is there, including both major mayoral candidates. Former mayor Hal Daub was walking around with his wife picking up people's trash. Smooth.

While not the healthiest meal I'll ever eat, HN can fry up some good catfish. And as you can see, they don't skimp. I love the Catholics.

It was Cordell's first fish fry too. He liked the coleslaw the best. (Gosh I love this kid, is he not the most adorable?) We left the church reeking to high heaven of deep fat fried food. Wearing a dry-clean-only jacket was a horrible idea. The grease was in the hair, on my skin, my scarf ... I had to wash everything. And I'll be back next week.

Holy Name is on 45th and Fontenelle Boulevard. The fish fry starts at 5 p.m. and goes until 8 or 9. Meals cost $9, soda and ice cream cost 50 cents each, and beer (like I said) is free. The proceeds benefit the church's grade school.