Columbus Baptist Pastor Charles Kennedy hugs wife Kimberly after meals were loaded for delivery last year at the Feed the Flock event on Thanksgiving Day.
Free Thanksgiving meals will be served again on Thanksgiving Day to those who want them, regardless of financial situation or financial need. For years, two local churches, First Christian and Columbus Baptist, have organized the homemade ham or turkey meals for hundreds of people.
Some diners are by themselves on the holiday and want fellowship. Others have no practical way to make a holiday meal because of limited finances or physical limitations in the kitchen.
This year, First Christian Church, working with Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center, will offer delivered meals only because of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. Columbus Baptist, on the other hand, will offer both dine-in meals and delivered meals as part of its Feed the Flock outreach, and is expecting some 1,000 meals to be prepared, according to Pastor Charles Kennedy.
Last year, a record of more than 1,880 people were fed Thanksgiving meals via First Christian, First Baptist and the America and Roby Anderson Community Center, according to organizers.
For the in-person meals, meal preparation and deliveries, all volunteers wore masks and also gloves where appropriate.
The America and Roby Anderson Center again will serve meals for pickup and delivery only from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Nov. 20, which is a Saturday-before-Thanksgiving tradition at the facility at 421 McClure Road.
The center, which organizers acknowledge is struggling to continue operating, also is taking donations of turkeys, corn, green beans and also to-go meal and pie containers, according to Beth Turner, the center’s board president.
Turner added that they also are accepting monetary donations beforehand for the meals.
