A soft brown bubble emerged from the gravy pot showing off the limits of a silky smooth viscosity as it stretched just to the point where it seemed its secrets would be revealed before bursting into delicious dribbles and retreating back into the pot. 

“They come for the gravy,” I’d been told. Now here I was face to face with Briana Nelson’s creation that has brought so much joy to the community of Ennis over the course of the last 10 years. It was the tale of the Ennis Senior Center’s 10th anniversary that brought me here. On that day Nelson, the only employee of the Senior Center, and her team of reliable volunteers served 140 pot roast meals, complete with her near legendary gravy. 

When I arrived for my volunteer shift in the Senior Center kitchen, there were three pots on the stove. The biggest one was filled to the brim with boiling potatoes. Next to is one held the stock and the last was a rue cooking down. Nelson had quickly employed my efforts to help put the food from the weekly delivery truck away and then set me to the task of cutting and portioning the slices of blueberry pie she’d made before. I admired the flaky crust and smooth filling of the pies and wondered how a gravy could upstage these homemade desserts. 

I didn’t even see it happen. Next time I turned around, the rue and the stock were combined. The gravy was together and bubbling gently on the burner. I had missed the big moment. Perhaps it was by design? Perhaps Nelson had intentionally kept me distracted to preserve her gravy’s secrets? Perhaps it was an oversight as she juggled preparing meals for the senior center patrons, patients of the hospital and Meals on Wheels recipients in the area? 

Nelson was summoned to answer the phone which had been ringing all morning. While she stepped away, sure to come back with several more pie containers as people continued to add their name to the list of orders for lunch. I looked quickly for a tasting spoon, but wasn’t able to find one fast enough to get a sneak preview of the star of the meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy dish we were preparing. 

Nelson used my services to help prepare not only for the lunch at hand, but also to work ahead for days when she would not have so much help. She had me dicing tomatoes and portioning ranch dressing for upcoming meals. She was savvy as any chef I have met, despite the fact that she never intended to be a cook. 

“I was working as a server when this place used to be Pit Stop Pizza and our cooks called out one day,” she explained as she dumped a tantalizing amount of butter, cream, salt and pepper into the now drained pot of potatoes. “I told the boss, ‘I think I can do it’ and we got slammed but I did. The next week I had cooking shifts on the schedule,” she mused at the memory while dunking a large tool that reminded me of an ice fishing auger into the pot of potatoes. 

“I used to mash these by hand,“ she explained as the machine came to life. “Then one day one of the volunteers showed up with this cement mixer,” she said, giving away the secret of her chosen tool. Deftly she dunked the blade into the potatoes and within seconds they were done. Perfectly mashed, creamy and ready to go into the steam table. 

10:30 a.m. arrived and Nelson announced that it was go time. We lined up the containers for the Meals on Wheels and carry out orders. Nelson directed the set up for the assembly line. She portioned the mashed potatoes, laid a thick slice of meatloaf that had just come out of the oven. She slid the containers down the line to me where I was in charge of adding the veggies and the gravy, before giving it the “sprinkles” of parsley flake that Nelson professed to love. 

While the meals came together Nelson adjusted and labeled boxes according to dietary requirements. 

“We like special orders here,” she exclaimed with a smile that would terrify most of the line cooks I had explored the topic of special orders with. She added a burger patty she had prepared for a client who is gluten free can’t eat the meatloaf with the bread crumbs in it to a container explaining the whole time how because she handles the meals for the hospital patients as well, her special orders run the gamut from no dairy to minced or pureed. 

“She’s the heart of this place,” said Lynn Foreman, the president of the Ennis Senior Center Board of Directors. “The patrons love her. The volunteers love her. The hospital thinks highly of her, and we're really fortunate to have her.”

I’d been given a break from the kitchen to sit down and discuss the nuts and bolts of how the senior center works. She’s been on the board from the very beginning in March of 2015 when the non-profit was created. 

While Nelson’s focus is most often on making sure that everyone who needs one gets a good meal, Foreman paints broad strokes of the bigger picture of the senior center. She lays out the scope of an offering that includes board games, mahjong, fitness classes and even tax preparation services. Our conversation travels through the history of the building, the first expansion project that Lion’s International helped them save money on by giving them an option aside from a H.U.D Grant and how the Madison Valley Woman’s Club makes a sizable donation to the facility each month. 

Foreman teases the next stage of expansion plans, tells a story about how there used to be a dance floor and how excited she is that the local Girl Scout troop is holding meetings and planning events at the center. Eventually, the conversation comes back to the meals that Nelson prepares every day and I ask how many she serves in a month. 

“How many do you think?” asks Foreman. “Go ahead, take a guess,” she urges me on. Not wanting to low ball, but wanting to be realistic I cautiously threw out the number 600. 

“In October we served 1,600,” she says with a smile. Far more than I’d imagined. Curiosity got the better of me and I couldn’t help asking how they paid for all those meals. 

She explained that state and federal money provides between one and two dollars a meal as long as they submit their detailed menus to the state and have them approved. I ask if those funds are in danger of being cut and she admits that the center has been told that they will. Before I can mobilize a response about how I can help rally to make up the lost funding and ensure the facility will continue on, she puts my concerns at ease. 

“We’re ok,” she states. “Madison County is one of the few counties that supports senior services. There is a mill levy that gets spread across the senior centers in the county. We’re very fortunate.” 

Foreman’s optimism is a welcome contract to the concerns over loss of federal funding that I have encountered from other organizations. Our conversation moves to the holiday bazaar that runs on Small Business Saturday the weekend after Thanksgiving each year and provides additional fundraising opportunities for the center. As we wrap up, the guests begin to file in. 

I return to my duties in the kitchen and we dish out additional meals. Foreman had told me that the in person diners were finally starting to come back in significant numbers after Covid had forced the center to operate their entire operation as take out. 

Nelson is placing the potatoes and meatloaf on white plates, creating height in the middle of the plate with her stack. I paint the gravy across the entree with a four ounce ladle. Then I accent Nelson’s masterpiece with the splashy color of the carrot and pea veggie mix and the dash of parsley sprinkles before they are taken out for the guests. 

When the meals are served, I am excused to create a plate for myself and experience the ambiance of the dining room. I arrive at the last spot at a full table and immediately am greeted by requests for extra gravy. It is brought to the table in four ounce ramekins with much of it going into the containers of leftovers that will provide a second hot meal to the guests. 

Before I dig into the much anticipated meal, I indulge in a moment of gratitude. So often service goes unnoticed in this day in age. A person like Nelson who wholeheartedly and humbly serves her community is a welcome contrast to the “look at me” messages that bombard our phones every day. Her efforts are making a huge impact on the patrons of the senior center, patients at the hospital and even at the food bank where leftover meals are often taken. 

I look around the room at the community that has come together for lunch. People of all ages, sitting and chatting as they enjoy a meal together. I think of all the people whose lunches are being delivered while I sit there. I think about the folks who can’t or just don’t want to cook for themselves who are getting to experience this meal because of the efforts of Nelson and the volunteers who have created this asset to our valley. 

I think back to the morning that I spent working in Nelson’s kitchen. About the joy she worked with. The rapport that she has with her volunteers. The tenacity she showed when we spoke about challenges she’s faced in her job and the encyclopedia of knowledge she exhibited about every guest who walked through the door. I vowed then and there to help however I can. Whether it is volunteering in the kitchen, giving a few bucks or just going to enjoy a meal for the five dollar suggested donation, I hope that you will join me in pledging to help out this program that so many people are so grateful for.  

As for the food, the potatoes were a flavorful foundation to the dish. The meatloaf was perfectly executed. It had none of the exotic spices that I use to try and convince people of my culinary awareness or the sweet ketchup glaze that I grew to hate as a kid. It was just simple, full of flavor and a near perfect vessel for experiencing the gravy. And the gravy? It was everything I imagined and maybe a bit more. I don’t have the words to adequately appease your taste buds, you’re going to have to get out and try it for yourself.  

You can find the menu for the Ennis Senior Center lunches and more information about how you can get involved at www.ennisseniorcenter.org