“Before students arrived to eat, the tables were all set with eating utensils, glasses, napkins, and pitchers of milk...All the waiters were men, as were those who worked in the kitchen preparing food and doing the dirty dishes; the cooks, of course, were all women from the community” –waiter Paul Kegel, Class of ‘57

Great Hall was used as a dining hall from 1942-1962.  A typical dining schedule included breakfast, two shifts at noon, and two shifts in the evening.  Students sat ten to a table, and a waiter was responsible for two tables. The waiters would bring out the dishes, which were then passed around the table "family-style" until the students were done with them.  Family-style serving continued for evening and Sunday meals in the Commons until 1971. 

Before evening and Sunday meals, the waiters would lead the students in singing the Doxology. The words of the Doxology are as follows:

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;

Praise him, all creatures here below;

Praise him above, ye heavenly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. 

Research by Lisa Verwys