by Ardeana Hamlin
of The Weekly Staff
STILLWATER — It takes many hands to make light the task of making ripe cucumber pickles at the Federated Church of Stillwater. Eighteen church members gathered at 8 a.m. on Sept. 10 at the church to peel cucumbers, cut them in half lengthwise, scoop out seeds, slice the cukes into strips lengthwise, then into chunks crosswise.
“It’s a messy job,” said Don Willette as he used a tablespoon to scoop seeds out of the peeled cucumbers. “We all can do all the different jobs, whatever is needed at the moment — we’re all cross-trained.” His statement drew a ripple of laughter from his co-pickle makers. It wasn’t long before he left his post at the long table to take a turn in the kitchen ladling hot pickles into freshly sterilized quart jars.
Cucumber chunks filled large green Tupperware and stainless steel bowls as the work progressed. Church member Ron Highbarger of Stillwater, serving as the “trash man,” dumped the peelings and seeds into white plastic buckets to add to his home compost pile.
The cucumbers for the pickle making sessions, said Peggy Manzer of Stillwater, are donated by local farmers and gardeners, the University of Maine Rogers Farm and other sources, some from as far away as East Corinth.
“Occasionally we have to buy cucumbers, but most are donated,” Manzer said.
“The community is very involved in donating cucumbers,” said Jan Willette of Veazie, one of the crew who does duty on the cooking end of pickle making.
“We are a very community oriented church,” said Peggy Manzer, who 30 or more years ago brought three quart jars of the ripe cucumber pickles to a church supper, pickles she had made using a recipe she had found among her mother’s recipes. The pickles were a hit, and her craft group members began to make them for the church suppers. One thing led to another, and soon the tradition of the annual pickle making sessions at the church took hold and grew.
At one point during the work session, the men and women standing or sitting at the long table as they peeled and sliced cucumbers entered into a discussion about exactly how long church members had been making pickles. No one knew the precise number of years, but all agreed it was at least 30 years. The discussion was finally settled, with much laughter, when Jerry Page asked, “When were cucumbers invented?”
“It has become a fun time,” Manzer said. “We use the big ripe cucumbers and are always looking for more as the pickles are very popular. Not only do we serve them at the suppers, but we sell them at the suppers and at our church fair, as well. This means that we need to make about 25 gallons for the suppers, 150 or more quarts and about 90 pints for sale. Some people come to our church suppers just for the pickles.” The ripe cucumber pickles are referred to locally as “Stillwater church pickles.”
In the church kitchen, church members mixed turmeric, celery seed, mustard seed, salt, vinegar and sugar, and poured it over the sliced cucumbers. Ten pounds of onions also were sliced and added to the mix. The commercial grade dishwasher was used to sterilize quart jars. Several large kettles, giving off the unforgettable aroma of the pickling process, bubbled away on the gas stove.
It would take until mid-afternoon before the pickle making session was finished and approximately 100 quarts of pickles were cooling in jars.
“We would not be able to do this [have homemade pickles] for every supper it it weren’t for this crew,” Manzer said. “I’ve never heard of another church that gets together to make pickles.”
There will be one more pickle making session this fall in order to meet the church’s pickle quota.
Volunteering time and skill for the pickle making session were Sue and Richard Gleason, Ron and Judy Highbarger, Jerry and Blanche Page, Pam Sirois, Eleanor and Red Bagley, Ethel Harriman, Nancy Jenkins, Janet Peet, Eleanor Perkins, Marlene Wight, Betty Cook, Peggy Manzer, and Jan and Don Willette.
The pickles are served at the church’s baked bean suppers and sold in quart and pint jars at the suppers, and at the church fair on Nov. 15. The cost is $6 for a quart of pickles, $3 for a pint. Upcoming church suppers will take place 4:30-6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27, Oct. 11, Oct. 25 and Nov. 1. Admission to the suppers is $7, $1 children.
Manzer estimated that pickle sales bring in approximately $1,000 each year, funds that will go toward providing assistance to Old Town millworkers who recently lost their jobs.