It takes a lot of turkey to feed thousands of Thanksgiving meals to those on Skid Row, and today, 3,600 pounds of turkey came out of the ovens and onto plates during the Los Angeles Mission’s annual Thanksgiving outreach.
The event featured more than 4,000 full-service turkey dinners and provided clothing, grooming, health care, service connections to housing and more to those in the Skid Row community.
Troy Vaughn, president and CEO of Los Angeles Mission added that Wednesday’s celebration isn’t just about food. “We serve a meal, but we serve so much more here. We do serve hope here.” He said there will be a clothing boutique, care tent, care tent, service connection to housing and more.
“We’re really using this as an opportunity to connect with our community,” Vaughn said. “And so there will be data runners running around collecting demographic information about their age, ethnicity and background and making sure that we connect them – whether it’s housing, employment, family reunification, relocation services, whether they want to get back home to where their is family.
Erik Grant, chef at the LA Mission, said it’s personal as he was once homeless.
“Here at the LA Mission, we not only believe there is hope in a meal, but we also believe in helping people recover, as well as breaking the cycle of homelessness,” he said.
In addition to the turkey, the kitchen was busy preparing 1,000 pounds of macaroni, 30 gallons of cranberry sauce, 1,000 pounds of kale and 100 gallons of gravy – all donated by Restaurant Depot.
“Whenever we can, we like to be part of the solution, so we’re showcasing it here,” said Tony Year, VP of Restaurant Depot.
