The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pan…A New Initiative

 

Remember I said I was rolling out a new initiative?!

Well, here it is!  The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pan!  After I wrote a post about it recently, I’ve been thinking, and the Lord has been birthing a new idea!

So here’s what I’m doing, and I want to invite you all to join along.

Go out and buy a cute 9×13 pan that you don’t care to get back.  Make it cute though. HERE is a decent one from Paula Deen for Walmart. for just $20.  Don’t just buy a metal pan…part of this is to feel well thought through.

After you buy a pan, make your dinner and double it.  Fill the pan with dinner.  Now take it to someone.

Now here’s the part that I think will make this awesome.  I have 2 pans that I’m starting to circulate.  I have a group of about 10 friends or so that I’m going to start one pan amongst.  Part of the purpose for this is just to help each other out.  I know that we all have days when dinner is about the LAST thing we want to think about.  So what if a friend just calls you up and brings you one unexpectedly?  I do this a fair amount anyhow, but this time it’s super intentional.  Grab a group of friends and plan to start a traveling pan within your group.

I’m also starting a pan in my neighborhood.  I know a good many of my neighbors, but there are plenty that I don’t know.  The purpose of this pan is to stimulate the growth of community and hospitality within your neighborhood.

There are rules though…so here you go:

When you get the pan, you must send it to someone else within 2 weeks from receipt.  It doesn’t matter what you put in it, but it needs to be dinner.  If this is in your neighborhood, then I encourage you to take the pan to a neighbor that you don’t know.  This way, once the pan is going, you’ll be meeting 2 people who you didn’t already know.  And you won’t just be meeting them, you’ll be loving them well!

Also, when you take the pan, I encourage you to start a notebook to go with it.  I’ve created some printable 8.5×11 PDF files that I’m attaching below so that you have it all ready to go.  The idea is that you keep a guest book of sorts to travel with the pan.  Put your name and who you’re sending it to for each journal entry.  Write a short note to the recipient on the top of the left page and on the right hand side, include the recipes that you’ve sent them.  When they get the pan (or before they send the pan on its way) they write some notes about how the meal encouraged and blessed them.

Here is the journal page PDF that you see above: STP Journal Recipe Page

I think that people will love reading the past entries, and again, it will build community to get to know people better this way!  I’d suggest  calling that day to let someone know you’re bringing the meal so that it’s a complete surprise.  If for some reason, it’s not convenient for them, then just take the pan to bless someone else!

And here’s what I ask of you: Let me know how it goes!  Leave comments below on the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pan Page here on the blog, and leave comments too on the Life for Dessert facebook page!  Let’s start a movement of blessing and community building one pan at a time!

I’m also going to post recipes and other ideas frequently here too that will make great ones to take for your Traveling Pan! If you ever take soup or something that doesn’t fit in the pan, just make sure you take the pan with the meal so that it doesn’t stop! Who wants to join me?  Let’s start a mobile revolution that connects people and loves well!

Make sure to join the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pan on Facebook  to share stories, recipes, and more!