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Across the West The Salvation Army is “Doing the most good” for many on Thanksgiving Day.
Volunteers in the Alaska Division prepare to serve Thanksgiving pie. |
Alaska—In Juneau, the Hanger on the Wharf will host the Army’s Thanksgiving dinner, providing an elegant setting for over 200 guests. In the Mat-Su Valley, Residential Mortgage Company will help to organize a canned food drive and will help the Army prepare about 400 food boxes to be distributed at Thanksgiving, as well as collecting toys and food for Christmas. Anchorage will host a community Thanksgiving dinner for 600, and an additional 400 meals will be delivered to the homebound through the Army’s Meal on Wheels program.
Cascade—The Harbor Light Center in downtown Portland will serve a Thanksgiving Day breakfast for the homeless and others. The division will also have their kettle kickoff with mascot bell ringing from various businesses and organizations. Later in the season celebrities and the Rotary Club will participate in bell ringing, along with characters from Star Wars ringing bells—Darth Vader, Storm Troopers and Princess Leia.
Del Oro—Chico Corps is serving a community Thanksgiving dinner. The Sacramento Corps is active with a CanTree at Downtown Plaza, a Thanksgiving meal at the shelter, and a kettle and Angel Tree kickoff at a local mall. In Reno, Harrah’s Reno is providing a sobriety dinner for ARP beneficiaries, ARP graduates and their families. The social services department will be distributing food vouchers for a holiday meal that will serve 650-700 people.
Golden State—Members of the San Francisco Fire and Police Departments will help carve more than 100 turkeys for Thanksgiving dinners to be delivered to needy seniors and the homebound. Hundreds of volunteers will help deliver nearly 3,000 meals. Additionally, more than 400 clients of the Army’s rehabilitation programs and their families will be served a Thanksgiving meal prepared by The Cheesecake Factory at the Adult Rehabilitation Center in San Francisco.
Hawaii—More than 6,000 people—families in need, the elderly and infirm, homeless individuals, and those who simply need fellowship—will be served a traditional Thanksgiving meal at various Salvation Army locations across the islands. On Oahu more than 2,000 will be served a full Thanksgiving meal. More than 800 volunteers serve and prepare food and decorate the dining hall. A host of donors and supporters contribute to make this annual event a success.
Intermountain—In Metro Denver The Salvation Army will be serving a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for hundreds of individuals and families on Thanksgiving Day at the Colorado Convention Center, with food donated by King Soopers. In addition, many volunteers will spend part of their Thanksgiving Day delivering dinner to shut-ins and seniors.
Northwest—On Thanksgiving Day a team of volunteers will serve breakfast bags to those in need in downtown Seattle. The next day there will be a Thanksgiving dinner at the William Booth Center with the Seahawks coach and his wife, Mike and Kathy Holmgren.
Sierra del Mar—Cathedral City is serving a traditional Thanksgiving for 300 at the corps. At the same the EDS canteen will take meals to the homebound and will serve dinner to the homeless at a local park. Eleven other corps community centers will provide Thanksgiving dinners for the homeless, seniors and the homebound.
Southern California—On Thanksgiving Eve the Walt Disney Company will sponsor a dinner for over 2,200 homeless and low-income families and individuals at the Hollywood Palladium. Various corps and units throughout the division will provide community dinners including Westwood Transitional Housing, Bell Shelter, Santa Fe Springs, Inglewood, Oxnard and Pasadena Tabernacle,
Southwest—On Thanksgiving Day Southwest divisional headquarters will feed over 1,200 and provide over 1,000 homebound individuals with a warm meal. Las Vegas anticipates two major events: a Thanksgiving feast at the homeless services campus provided by Circus Circus Casino and serving over 800 men, women and children; and a sit-down dinner for 300-400 homeless, served by community volunteers. Yuma, Clovis, Tempe, Prescott and Farmington will host community dinners, while the Kingman Corps and White Mountain Outpost distribute food boxes.