Another heartwarming Waterfront Café community Thanksgiving meal

After more than a decade, the Waterfront Café has a tried-and-true recipe for its popular annual community Thanksgiving meals.

But this year a new ingredient was added to the mix – outdoor dining.

La Conner was greeted with bright sunshine and unseasonably balmy weather last Thursday, leading numerous diners to enjoy their traditional turkey-and-fixin's and beverages on the café's deck overlooking Swinomish Channel.

"I can't remember it ever being warm enough outside for people to eat out on the deck," recalled longtime volunteer server Jaime Stroebel-Reinstra.

For years owners Guy and Marla Vallee, Chef Dagmar, the café staff and its loyal corps of volunteers have generated plenty of warmth inside by preparing and serving a no-charge Thanksgiving dinner for locals and long-distance travelers alike.

"This is the best Thanksgiving thing we've ever done," Guy Vallee, a veteran restaurateur, said. "You can feel the vibe here. So many places are closed on Thanksgiving, so there aren't a lot of places for people to go if they're on the road and away from family."

Many, too, are regulars. They show up for good food, fellowship and the opportunity to donate to the charitable causes the dinners support.

While the meals of turkey, potatoes, stuffing, corn and dessert, were free, Marla Vallee said diners pitched in over $2,500 that will be donated to the La Conner Sunrise Food Bank and NOAH, a nonprofit animal adoption center and spay and neuter clinic in Stanwood. That included $100 that came late from someone unable to attend.

"We have people who've been coming here for the last 10 years." Vallee told the Weekly News.

A healthy mix of La Conner area residents and visitors gathered at the downtown restaurant.

"Skagit Community Action posted the four places in the county where free Thanksgiving dinners were being served and we were the only one that's a restaurant," said Vallee, alluding to the out-of-town diners.

Brysen Russell of Naples, Florida was one. From a sunny spot on the deck he quipped that he was here for the weather.

The many long-term volunteers included Town Fire Chief Aaron Reinstra and La Conner Hook & Ladder members.

"Most everybody has been here for years," Guy Vallee said, "and they always come back to volunteer."

He singled out the Reinstra family connection.

"We raised money for Ashlyn Reinstra when she had leukemia," Vallee recalled. "Ever since then they have been a big part of this."

Vallee said Ashlyn Reinstra, a former high school and college soccer standout now in the health care field, frequently returns to fill shifts at the Waterfront Café.

"She works here during tulips and sometimes in the summer," he said. "She's like family."

Another key volunteer, realtor Angie Bassarte, was serving when a second rush of diners arrived around 1:30 p.m.

"I always look forward to coming in and helping out," she said between taking meal orders.

One familiar face was missing, however. Bill Stokes, a former town council member, was out of town and not able to bring homemade pies. "God bless him," Guy Vallee said. "He has poured his love into this. He's been so diligent about it. He even picked the berries himself that he used to bake the pies."

With what they call their "lucky 13th" community Thanksgiving dinner behind them, the Vallees are already looking forward to next year's turkey day.

"We'd rather do this on Thanksgiving," explained Guy Vallee, "than just sit around the house."

People from all corners of Skagit County and beyond could not be happier that the couple's healthy appetite for public service remains intact.