United Boys & Girls Clubs Serve Thanksgiving To-Go Meals
Turkey and Mashed ‘Taters Go to 300 Families in Need
United Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Barbara County’s traditional sit-down community Thanksgiving dinner looks a little different this year. In the past, each Club site would have a Thanksgiving community meal. Some sites would partner with their local school districts, and other sites would have local donations and donors wanting to prepare the meal. These dinners would feed anywhere from 300 to 600 people per Club location ranging from Carpinteria, two sites in Santa Barbara, Goleta, and North County in Lompoc.
This year, thanks to UBGC donors and the help from Country Catering Company in Goleta, UBGC will be able to distribute 300 family meals that feed a family of four. The dinner will be precooked and will need to be warmed up in the pan it’s handed out in. Families were able to RSVP for meals.
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The pickup system will be similar to when UBGC was open as a Foodbank distribution site. Families can drive or walk up and be handed a meal to take home. The meal will have roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans, all sponsored by numerous donors. The meal also includes rolls donated by Belmond El Encanto and Albertsons in Goleta and a bag of fruit for each family donated by The Berry Man.
“This event is a great act of kindness for the families receiving the meal from the UBGC, and it’s with gratitude that we are able to fulfill the request and be part of this special giving. Being able to hang on through the tough times and receive and fulfill requests, of this nature especially, gives us the hope to be strong for today and the faith to trust what will come,” shared Steve Gully, CEO of Country Catering Company.
“This is a tradition for all of our sites. We’ve found a way to keep it going, albeit slightly altered. We miss coming together as a community, but there will now be over 1,200 people in our county having a traditional Thanksgiving meal thanks to all our generous donors, volunteers, and tireless staff,” commented Michael Baker, CEO of UBGC.
This meal would not be possible without the donations of the community and proud UBGC donors. They have helped not only with providing this hot meal for families but also by opening the doors of each location and providing a safe place for youth to go where they can have resources needed to keep up with online school.
UBGC has seven locations in the county that distributed food on Tuesday, November 24. For more information on other events UBGC is doing in the community or to donate, please call (805) 681-1315 or email Laurie L. Leis, Executive Vice President of Advancement, at LLeis@unitedbg.org.
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