Roughly 1,000 men are expected to descend on The Waters Church in Sartell this Sunday for a free evening of grilled hot dogs, chicken wings, pulled pork, hamburgers and ribeye steak, all cooked up on about 30 grills lined up back to back. The event, called The Meating, runs from about 5 to 8 p.m. and is open to any man age 15 or older, whether or not he has ever set foot in the church.
A Free Night Built Around Gratitude
According to WJON, the gathering is designed as a thank-you to men for their contributions to the community, and it has grown into something bigger than a cookout. Mitch Severson, the church's connection coordinator, said the event builds camaraderie among men and has become a multigenerational tradition, with three and four generations sometimes showing up together. The event will also feature the Rock on Truck Gold Star Memorial, giving attendees a chance to pay respects alongside the food and fellowship.
The draw extends well beyond Sartell itself. The station's report notes that church groups have made the trip from 30 to 50 miles away just to take part, turning what began as a local men's gathering into something closer to a regional tradition.
From Six Pounds of Bacon to a Community Fixture
The Meating did not start out as a 1,000-person affair. Per the same account, the very first gathering drew just seven people and six pounds of bacon before growing steadily year over year into the sprawling grill-out it is today. Severson has described the multigenerational turnout in personal terms, noting there are guys where you have three generations, with the son, the dad and the grandpa, all showing up together.
Organizers say all of the meat served is either donated or purchased by the church, keeping the event free for every attendee. Last year, the operation required 32 grills running at once, a scale that echoes The Meating's earlier history — a 2019 report from the St. Cloud Times described the church grilling about 2,000 pounds of pork, beef and chicken that year with the help of roughly 100 volunteers, 40 standard grills and one commercial grill.
A Track Record of Never Running Short
That same 2019 event, according to mnaog.org, drew nearly 1,000 men who worked their way through about 1,800 pounds of meat. Last year's gathering was planned around a similar quantity, with about 2,000 pounds of meat on the menu, including hot dogs, chicken wings, pulled pork, hamburgers and ribeye. Despite the huge crowds those numbers suggest, Severson told KDHL Radio, “we've never ran out.”
Whether the food supply holds up again this year remains to be seen, but organizers are clearly counting on the tradition to keep pulling in fathers, sons and grandfathers alike. With 30 grills fired up and a Gold Star memorial on hand, Sunday's Meating in Sartell is shaping up as another chapter in an event that started with a handful of guys and a few pounds of bacon and grew into a community fixture.
