This Saturday, The Gerry Frank Amphitheater at Salem’s Riverfront Park will be transformed by the smell of grilled steaks and chatter of community members connecting over a meal. From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 5, the Union Gospel Mission plans to serve hundreds of lunches, distribute necessities and connect neighbors experiencing homelessness with services. They’re calling the event One Table Salem. “This day is not solving homelessness, and that’s not the goal. The goal is really to connect with our neighbors. It’s to come out and serve, and then connect them with the life changing services providers that are all throughout Salem ready to help,” said Josh Hren, the Union Gospel Mission event coordinator.This will be the inaugural event, inspired by the Fresno Rescue Mission’s annual One Table gathering, which Hren saw firsthand on a trip to California last fall.At the Fresno event, Hren said that he was inspired by seeing business leaders, pastors and unsheltered guests having conversations about everyday topics. “What I saw was just the connection,” he said. “At the (Union Gospel Mission), our tagline is ‘changing the face of homelessness, one story at a time.’ And that really simmers down to focusing on that one individual in that one moment.”Union Gospel Mission is a private religious nonprofit that operates the Men’s Mission, Salem’s largest homeless shelter, and the Simonka Place women’s shelter. One Table comes at the start of fall, months ahead of typical holiday meal gatherings over Thanksgiving and Christmas. Holding the event this weekend means getting ahead of some of the cold weather, Hren said. “We’ll be distributing 700 winter and raincoats, wool socks and blankets. Me, just getting into the car and driving to work, the mornings are cold, the evenings are getting colder. We’re preparing our guests for the season,” he said.Eight churches held coat drives to collect the new and gently used items for Saturday. Guests will have a personal shopper style experience alongside a volunteer to find the right fit. Getting ready for the event has been a community effort, Hren said. The event’s presenting sponsor is Pioneer Trust Bank, and Roberson Motors was also crucial, he said.They cut off registration for volunteers about two months ago, after 250 people signed up to help.There will be a dozen service providers, including the Boys & Girls Club, Church at the Park, Family Building Blocks and Bridgeway Recovery. Marion County and the Salem-Keizer School District have helped do outreach ahead of the event. Starting around 11 a.m., each guest will get a steak lunch served by volunteers, some of whom are city leaders and businesspeople. They include Salem Police Chief Trevor Womack, Marion County Commissioner Danielle Bethell and Brad Compton, president of Pioneer Trust Bank. The food manager at Union Gospel Mission came up with a custom steak rub for the event. It was chosen by staff among several specially-made options, and they’re calling the winning blend “Walter’s bold barbeque gold.” They’ve made about 10 gallons of it for Saturday.Everyone will get their own personal steak, same as the Fresno event, because it will make the day more special, Hren said. On Thursday they were already processing the quality cuts from Childers Meat Inc. based in Eugene.“The guests that are being served, some will maybe not remember the last time they’ve had red meat alone,” he said. “It’s about dignity and respect.”Medical Teams International will bring a van out to Riverfront Park for walk-up emergency dental care, and Salem Free Clinics will provide medical care. There will also be foot washing, bike repairs by The Northwest Hub and hot coffee.  They’d planned to provide haircuts, but they’ve not been able to replace the team of barbers after a last-minute drop-out, Hren said. He hopes they can have haircuts at next year’s event. Hren said that it’s been exciting to get a wide range of community support and guidance for the first year of the event, which he hopes will help people get the support they need to take their next steps. “It’s really about serving. And for us, demonstrating the love and grace of Jesus Christ to our neighbors on the streets and those needing life-saving services that we’re able to provide not only on October 5, but in general,” he said. Anyone who could benefit from the resources, whether they’re unsheltered or not, is invited, according to the event page. Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-575-1251. A MOMENT MORE, PLEASE– If you found this story useful, consider subscribing to Salem Reporter if you don’t already. Work such as this, done by local professionals, depends on community support from subscribers. Please take a moment and sign up now – easy and secure: SUBSCRIBE. The post Hundreds will gather for community meal at Riverfront Park on Saturday appeared first on Salem Reporter.