“We just asked ourselves: what do students need right now? And the answer was simple — food, and someone who cares.”
— The Rev. Anne Matthews, Campus Missioner, Southwestern, Georgetown
Grace Episcopal Church officially relaunched Canterbury, its Episcopal student organization at Southwestern University, in Spring of this year — a milestone that marks the evolution of years of volunteer, church, community and university connection-driven work that began with a single question and a home-cooked meal.
How It Started
In April 2022, the Rev. Anne Matthews, a Southwestern alumna and retired Episcopal priest with years of experience in student faith formation, and Dr. Melanie Hoag Bliss, a longtime SU faculty member who had advised Canterbury for years, identified a clear opportunity to serve the student community through something immediate and tangible. Vicki Braun, a Grace Vestry member with a talent for organizing, pulled the first meal together in a matter of days. Twenty-six students attended. The program, known as Chinner — a word coined by students as an amalgamation of “church” and “dinner” — has run every fall and spring since.
A Ministry Built on Consistency
Chinner is offered three times each semester, on the last Tuesday evening of the month from 6 to 8 p.m. Attendance ranges from 25 to 75 students at a university of less than 1,500 with a richly diverse student body in terms of faith traditions and no traditions. Every meal is home-cooked, open to all students regardless of faith background, and staffed by rotating volunteer teams coordinated by Tina Small. Lani Eddins and Vicki Braun have been among the steady coordinators since the program’s earliest days. Grace Church funds Chinner entirely.
As the program matured, organizers identified a recurring pattern: food insecurity spikes among students at the end of each month, precisely when Chinner is held. The team introduced goody bags filled with snacks for students to take home before finals, which became immediately popular. Items not claimed are donated to the campus food pantry.
Canterbury, the Episcopal student organization that Chinner supports and draws from, incorporates a Bible study or theological reflection into each gathering. Students have also expressed growing interest in service opportunities, an area the ministry plans to expand further in the coming semester.
Partnerships That Made It Work
Grace’s ministry has found natural alignment at Southwestern, whose Core Purpose centers on fostering a community whose values and actions encourage contributions to the well-being of humanity. The university’s Core Values — among them respecting the worth and dignity of persons, fostering diverse perspectives, and encouraging activism in the pursuit of justice and the common good — reflect the same commitments that drive both Chinner and Canterbury. Dr. Ron Swain, Southwestern’s Chaplain and Director of Spiritual Life, has been a key partner in that alignment, serving as advisor and institutional connector between the university’s values and Grace’s ministry on the ground. His office has been essential in ensuring that all students feel welcomed and included in the program.
Dr. Dinushka Paranavitana, who became Canterbury’s faculty advisor in fall 2025, has brought consistent engagement and support to every aspect of the program — including Chinner.
“College life is both exciting and challenging for many students. A ministry like this is especially important because it provides a space of support, belonging, and comfort, particularly amid the challenges our country faces today. Through Canterbury at Southwestern University, we offer all students an opportunity to build friendships, share a home-cooked meal through Chinner, and find community regardless of their religious beliefs. Canterbury also provides a unique place of belonging for students who may not always feel welcome elsewhere, while creating opportunities to serve others and make a lasting impact on both the university and the broader community,” she said.
Student president Catie Grace Gorman has been the driving force behind Canterbury’s visibility on campus, actively promoting both Canterbury gatherings and Chinner through Instagram, bringing friends, and building the kind of peer-to-peer momentum that no flyer can replicate. Sunday meetings may be intimate in size, but the community Gorman is cultivating through social media is reaching students across denominations and backgrounds. The good will between Grace Church and Southwestern, she and her peers say, was a decisive factor in Canterbury’s return.
A Model Others Want to Replicate
The results have drawn attention beyond Georgetown. The Rev. Enrique McCartney of Prairie View A&M visited Chinner this year alongside the president and vice president of Prairie View’s own Canterbury chapter. Their goal was to study the Grace model and bring both a similar dinner ministry and Canterbury chapter to their campus.
For Grace Church, the work is ongoing. Volunteers rotate each semester, but the commitment of Grace Church does not waver. What started as a question — what students need and can we provide it — has become two functioning programs, a relaunched student organization, and a blueprint that other congregations are now looking to follow.
