A community Thanksgiving feast that’s been on hold the past two years will return to the Ellijay First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall Saturday, Nov. 19.
The early Thanksgiving dinner presented by Faith, Hope and Charity will last from 11 a.m.- 2 p.m.
“We will be serving until the food runs out. Not having it the last two years, we have no idea of how many people will show up,” said Lou Summers, event organizer.
The community Thanksgiving event saw strong turnouts at the church for several years until the COVID pandemic sidelined it in 2020 and 2021.
“Altogether, in 2019, we served meals to 1,532 people,” said Summers. “(The last two years), we did meal vouchers for people to go to local restaurants, but we haven’t had the sit-down dinner since 2019. What we tried to do (with the meal vouchers) was hit the people who were really impacted by COVID, such as hospital workers and nurses.”
Everyone is welcome to attend, and there’s no charge for the meal, Summers confirmed. Volunteers with multiple area churches help to staff the event, she noted.
“We want the community to know it’s for everybody,” said Summers. “It’s Faith, Hope and Charity’s way of saying thank you to the community.”
Food purchases for the meal are complete, but anyone who wants to donate a dessert in a nonreturnable dish can still do so, Summers noted.
Church members will be accepting those dessert items in the parking lot next to the church, located at 164 Dalton Street, from 1-5 p.m. Nov. 17 and 18.
“If they come to the side parking lot, there will be a tent set up, and they can hand desserts to one of the guys,” said Summers.