On a typical day we see about ~ 20 clients between the hours of 1-3 pm. The Tuesday before Thanksgiving we saw over 60 families.
We didn't finish filling their orders till 4:30 pm and by then we had run out of most of the food: the fresh fruits and vegetables were gone, the good stuff anyway, onions were still available. Quite a bit of the canned goods were gone. I took the last can of chicken broth off the shelf and gave it away as "Soup". Oreos with a Halloween theme (orange-colored filling) were given because all of the pies and pastries were gone. We were running low on milk, and ran out of eggs.
But everyone, who wanted one, got a turkey.
I am grateful for the generosity of Communities who provide for food insecure Households. I am thankful for the Atascadero Loaves and Fishes (ALF), our local food pantry. ALF distributes groceries, household essentials, vouchers for propane (heat source), and vouchers to be used at the local thrift store for adult job-seekers and kids' clothing. ALF is made up entirely of volunteers.
And I am thankful that there were four of us Baggers (usually it's only two) who showed up on Tuesday to help distribute to the 60+ families. It was an enjoyable day.
From our home to yours, Happy Thanksgiving 2017.
