An army of 200 volunteers have worked hard Tuesday and Wednesday to prepare meals and presentation for up to 600 guests for the Turlock Gospel Mission’s Thanksgiving Community Dinner.
Volunteers are preparing everything from eating utensils with napkins to sweet potatoes and turkeys — along with all the fixings for what will sure to be a delicious Thanksgiving meal for so many less fortunate in the Turlock community.
Volunteers come from all walks of life, including some as young as 6 years old. Erin Hall brought her three daughters, Maryn, 6, Megan, 9, and Madison, 11 to help in the preparations.
“For Madison, she is here for community service hours for our church, but I brought all the girls so they can learn to appreciate all they have and to learn about giving back to the community,” said Erin.
Another volunteer, Shanin Soomalan, shared her thoughts on Facebook.
“…more than 100 children will be at the event tomorrow! It breaks my heart to know that these people have nowhere to go any day of the year,” she posted. “They (TGM) were kind enough to leave me in charge of providing lemonade for the kids this year as well as preparing the mashed potatoes and gravy for the rest of the day. I feel more blessed than ever to be able to help and provide a lunch for these people that I didn’t seem to have forgotten about.”
The free Thanksgiving meal will be held on Nov. 27 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Turlock Gospel Mission, located at S. 437 Broadway. The food will be served outside so dress for chilly weather.
