Updated 12/9/25 @ 9:15 p.m. with the link to the video.

A Whitewater program will be featured on Monday, December 8 on the WDJT Channel 58 News at 10 p.m. One of the regular diners from the community had reached out to the Milwaukee station to suggest that the University/Community Lunch that is offered at First United Methodist Church would be an interesting feature for Natalie Shepherd’s “Everyday Heroes.” Shepherd, the evening anchor, recently visited the lunch to see it for herself.

Lunch Coordinator Terrie Parenteau indicates that about 250 meals a week are currently being provided. Four to six volunteers assist Parenteau with preparing and serving the meals, not to mention additional church members who contribute food from home. The program is in its 25th year, having pivoted to take-out meals five days a week during the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost 20,000 meals were provided during that time.

Students and community members are welcome at the free lunch, which is served throughout the school year on Tuesdays from 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The last lunch for the semester will be served on December 9, with the first lunch in 2026 being served on January 27.

Written by Lynn Binnie
Whitewater Banner volunteer staff
whitewaterbanner@gmail.com