Old School Fine Foods, an Urbana-based mobile restaurant and catering service owned by The Christian Brothers Services Inc., is giving back to its customers who helped the nonprofit corporation assist area at-risk youths and senior citizens.

To mark the mobile restaurant’s fourth year anniversary, the food truck will give out 500 free hot dogs and chips from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Walmart parking lot, 1840 E. U.S. Route 36 in Urbana.

“We’ve been blessed, and this is our way of giving back,” said Urbana resident Arthur Christian, who co-founded The Christian Brothers Services with his three brothers: the Rev. Johannes, George and Godfrey.

The anniversary celebration on Saturday will also feature music and fellowship. In addition to the free hot dogs and chips, Old School Fine Foods will be selling dinners for those interested in purchasing a meal.

The mobile restaurant serves up baby back ribs, barbecue chicken, pulled pork and a variety of sides.

Life-altering event leads to outreach program

The summer of 2001 is one the Christian brothers will never forget following a random act of violence that nearly took the life of one of them.

While driving along Interstate 70 in Clark County on a July day in 2001, Johannes Christian, of Columbus, was struck in the face by a rock that crashed through his windshield. The rock, thrown off an overpass by a teenager, left him blind.

Now a retired minister, Johannes Christian travels the country taking part in motivational speaking engagements and church revivals.

“He also goes into prisons and talks about forgiveness and how he was able to forgive,” Arthur Christian said.

Less than a year after the incident, the four brothers co-founded The Christian Brothers Services nonprofit corporation in March 2002 in hopes of preventing other youths from taking part in senseless acts of violence.

“Our family got together and decided to try and help become a solution to the problem,” Arthur Christian said.

The majority of the outreach services provided by the nonprofit focus on helping at-risk youths and assisting senior citizens, Arthur Christian said.

To help generate funds to carry out the nonprofit’s mission, the brothers turned to the grill and opened Old School Fine Foods.

“(Old School Fine Foods) makes it possible for us to do the things we do,” Arthur Christian said. “Our main object for the celebration on Saturday is to give out free hot dogs and chips as our way of saying thank you to the community for supporting us.”

Every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., unless the food truck is out catering an event, it can be found serving up food in the parking lot of the former Buckles Motors building at the corner of South Main Street and Powell Avenue in Urbana.

For more information concerning The Christian Brothers Services or Old School Fine Foods, contact Arthur Christian at 937-653-6217.