HARTFORD – The smell of fresh-baked bread, pasta dishes and casseroles drifted from town hall Friday night as the monthly community potluck supper got under way.

The suppers have become surrounded by controversy, but it was hard to tell on that evening. People gathered around communal tables and shared food, conversation and laughter.

“This is a wonderful event that gets a bad rap,” said Hartford resident Terry Hayes, a Democratic candidate for the Maine House of Representatives, who was on her way out the door after enjoying a meal.

Janine Veilleux, also of Hartford, said she has been attending the suppers since they were started by Selectman Lee Holman.

“It means getting to know people, because I lived in the woods and I never came out,” she said with a shy laugh. “They’re all nice people – they wouldn’t be here if they weren’t nice people.”

Charles and Eleanor Jones, also residents of Hartford, echoed Veilleux’s words. Charles Jones was a guest of honor Friday, having just turned 90,

“We have a wonderful group of people,” he said. The meal, he said, had been “delicious.”

“It’s nice to see all ages,” Eleanor Jones said. “I think we’ve been to all (the suppers). I think it’s a great idea.”

Eleanor Jones was correct about the ages. There were young children and adults, and several older couples like the Joneses.

There were also people from near and far. Denise Timberlake and Dorothy Prince were with a group from St. Philip’s Church in Auburn, which was making its way to the theater in Buckfield. Tim Pettingill and his wife, Sybilla, had come from Lisbon Falls to visit with his mother, Marge Pettingill. Vernal and Helen Andrews had driven from Sumner; they try to make the suppers as often as possible.

Members of the Hartford Board of Selectmen have criticized Lee Holman’s performance, saying she spends more time planning suppers than tending to her duties as an elected official. Neither Chairman Scott Swain nor member Laura Marston could be reached for comment Monday.

Holman said Friday that one of her priorities is community building. She said she was thrilled every time a new person walked through the door, and said many had never come to the suppers before.

Bill Ricker was one such new person. He and his friend Judy Odyssey were driving by town hall when they remembered the supper and decided to stop in.

“I don’t know anything about any controversy,” he said after he finished cleaning his plate.

However, he continued, his father was a Baptist pastor, and “he didn’t take to a church until at least three public suppers.”

“He would be right at home here,” Ricker said. “It’s about time we get back to some of the basics.”