St. John Fisher Catholic Church, 1229 Third St., North Catasauqua, held a Lenten fish dinner Feb. 23 in its social hall. The dinner included fish with halushkies or potatoes, corn, coleslaw, a roll with butter and an array of baked goods.

A team of volunteers assisted to make the dinner a success. At the door selling tickets and collecting prepaid tickets were the father-and-son duo of Joe and Joseph Keglovits. Both have been elected officials and community activists in North Catasauqua.

Dinners were offered for dine-in or takeout. Mary Gail Smith, of Whitehall, and Ann Marie Pflugler, of North Catasauqua, chose the takeout option. They chatted pleasantly as they waited to receive their dinners.

Volunteer servers Louise Seng, Jean Strohl and Kaylee Valeno, all of North Catasauqua, and Joanne Fallon, of Catasauqua, worked together to serve attendees.

Annette Englert, a hands-on volunteer leader and fish dinner director, was in the kitchen manning the fish-frying stovetop.

The desserts were all homemade. Phyllis Keglovits staffed the baked goods table, as attendees needed some time to pick the dessert of their choice.

Dottie Dundon, of Catasauqua, and Rose Stegemerten and Fran Williams, both of North Catasauqua, enjoyed friendly conversation as they ate dinner.

Richard and Georgianna Chase, Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church of Whitehall parishioners, sat side by side as they enjoyed their dinner. They said they like to go to fish dinners at other churches to support the effort.

Friday fish dinners at Catholic churches are common this time of year. Many Catholics refrain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent, which runs Ash Wednesday through Easter. Worshipping Catholics, up until 1966 via church law, were forbidden to eat meat on any Friday.

In 1983, the Code of Roman Catholic Church Canon Law revised the rule, allowing Catholics to eat meat whenever, except for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The U.S. Council of Bishops then extended the law to include abstaining from meat consumption to all Fridays in Lent.