Central Missouri Community Action offered a unique dining experience in its second annual "Dinner for a Difference."
CMCA hopes to raise awareness of the issue of poverty in Mid-Missouri and the reality it entails.
After a chance to socialize and listen to the music of live band Rose Ridge, diners were invited to sit and were told the color of their place mats indicated their socio-economic status.
Each table had lower-class and upper-class mats, while the other place mats indicated the middle class. The tables also contained quotes and sayings capturing the realities of poverty such as "Not everyone who needs help is on welfare" and "I make $9.50 an hour, 12-hour shifts, I barely get to see my family."
As the dinner started, the upper-class diners were served first. Their meals were served on nice plates with salads on a separate plate from the main course. Their status also gave them glass goblets.
Middle-class diners received their meals with the main course and salad on single, smaller melamine plates. Regular glasses were filled by waiters who offered them attention, though not as much as the upper-class diners.
Once everyone else was served, the lower-class diners were informed their meals were ready to be picked up by the bar. Their meals were served on Styrofoam plates with plastic utensils and paper napkins. Water pitchers were set up around the room with plastic cups for them.
All the diners were given the same meal, but the effect of the different treatment left people feeling uncomfortable.
Every diner was served dessert at the same time on a real plate. The effect was to show how differently people treat those of different socioeconomic classes, especially the poor, but everyone deserves the same treatment.
"We need to understand the realities of poverty," CMCA Executive Director Darin Preis said.
He said he wasn't sure last year how the event would be received but it had turned out to be a lot of fun.
"Poverty does exist in our community," Angela Hirsch, the chief program officer at CMCA, said. "We are a community and we are stronger together."
Carolyn Lewis spoke after the dinner about her experience not only being a recipient of some of the programs available to people from Central Missouri Community Action, but also about her successes and her experience as a board member for the organization.
Dr. Roger Drake, president of Central Methodist University, spoke of his youth in poverty and his experience being in the first head start program. CMCA supports various programs such as Head Start, Missouri Work Assistance, Energy Assistance program and MO Ride, amongst others. These programs are designed to provide "help for today, hope for tomorrow."
Drake said 58,000 people in Mid-Missouri live in poverty, noting 15,000 are children. CMCA's mission is to provide assistance to those people.
"It's such a mission-driven organization. It makes me very, very proud to be associated with them," Drake said.