Mayor Jeff Porter and Councilwoman Judy Waldman combined their resources to provide 80 Homestead families with a turkey dinner, complete with fresh locally grown vegetables which were donated by F&T Farms, Inc., and pumpkin pies, donated by Signature HealthCARE of Brookwood Gardens. With the help of Parks & Recreation, QRT, and Jacki Pilkington, using donated bags from Wal-Mart and Walgreens, they assembled Thanksgiving packages and personally distributed the items to underpriviledged families at the William Dickinson Community Center on the afternoon of November 26, 2013.
The recipients were extremely grateful and included seniors from the Center, members from Life-Pointe Church, and families experiencing hardship who are serviced by Chapman Partnership.
“Hunger is advertised and well-known in other countries,” said Councilwoman Waldman, “but we don’t realize the hunger that exists in our very own community. The Mayor and I united our supplies in order to provide a complete meal. It warms my heart to hold events such as these; giving back just makes everything I do more relevant.”
Although Mayor Porter was not able to attend the distribution day, he was heavily involved in the preparation and organization of this Thanksgiving drive.
“Our City is filled with good, caring people who want to make a difference and better the life of their neighbors and fellow residents,” said Mayor Porter. “I give thanks for these folks as I give to those that are in need through even the smallest gesture. It is evident, my constituents are models of this desire as well. Each member of Council held some type of food drive during the holidays.”
