Hunger Task Force gave out thousands of turkeys Friday afternoon in West Milwaukee. Food pantries from around Southeast Wisconsin picked up the turkeys and other items to make sure families have food ahead of the holidays.
"We got great stuff that can support a really nice healthy Thanksgiving meal,” Julia Means, the Parish Nurse at Ebenezer Church of God in Christ, explained.
She was just one of the 70 local food pantry coordinators who had her car filled with frozen turkeys and all the fixings.
Means says a Thanksgiving meal is a way of bringing families together. And costs shouldn't stop that.
"We wanna be there to reunite families."
Means says her pantry has a goal this season.
"Last month we served 188 families. And so this month we want to serve the same amount and we want to supply them with a turkey."
The Hunger Task Force says this is the first holiday season in three years without the federal pandemic aid. Sherrie Tussler, the CEO of Hunger Task Force says they're noticing the difference.
"The need is greater than it has been in a number of years," Tussler explains.
Tussler says this distribution gets more food into the hands of people who need it.
"The problem of poverty isn't just concentrated in those low-income neighborhoods and so each of these groups serves a specific population and they do it really well."
“People get tearful, there is a range of emotions. But it’s definitely clear and visible that people are impacted" Heidi Gould the director of the Jewish Community Pantry explains.
Gould says these donations will make the holidays a little happier.
“Folks in the community are going to have one less thing to worry about. It makes my heart feel warm. It makes us feel like we are building a healthier Milwaukee, and I am so happy about that."
The Hunger Task Force is still in need of more turkeys for the holiday season. The Turkey Ticker Challenge goes until November 30.
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