Conduit Ministries, partners to hand out 1800 Thanksgiving meals for those in need
Trending
Heading into November also brings the Thanksgiving season, and as the holiday approaches Conduit Ministries and their partners are looking to hand out 1800 meals this year as part of their Thanksgiving Give-Away Program for those in need.
Each meal will be prepared-at-home meals and include typical Thanksgiving food such as turkey, potatoes, stuffing, green beans, corn, cranberry sauce, rolls, and pie, with a foil pan. The meals will be given away on November 21 at 2 p.m. at 12 sites in Chautauqua County and one in Warren. The program has expanded, with 100 meals added for this year, and a new location in Mayville at the Living Faith Bible Church.
Other locations giving away meals include; Celoron Park, Ellery Park, Panama Methodist Church, TRZ in Frewsburg, Falconer High School, Jamestown High School, Washington Middle School, Love School, Bush School, Fletcher School, Persell Middle School, and the Warren First Church of the Nazarene.
Meals are first come first serve and each location has a different amount of meals, with the 1800 meals separated across all of the sites, depending on assessed need. At most sites people will come and receive chilli and hot cocoa the day of, and then get their meals and connect with people.
"Anybody who has a need can participate," Jessica McKeever, Conduit Director of Operations, said. "And that's the thing, it's for anybody, no questions asked. Sometimes it might be the physical need for food, but sometimes we know there's a need for connection and a spiritual need for those kinds of things. That's an important emphasis for us is that it's a no questions asked event."
Senior Pastor Cameron Lienhart added that the event is an opportunity for people to recognize it as a community event, meaning that even if they are not a part of Conduit or any participating or partner churches, they can still get involved in helping serve the community. Volunteers are being looked for to help serve at any of the locations. Lienhart added people can also donate to help pay for the event, with the cost being roughly $40 to feed one family.
"With lots of people committing to feed one family, we can really make a big difference," Lienhart said.
If people want to get involved donation wise, a donate button for the Thanksgiving event can be found on Conduit Ministries' website, conduitministries.com. Sign ups to volunteer to serve can be found there as well.
McKeever also acknowledged Conduit Ministries' partner churches, Bemus Point Methodist Church, Trinity Church in Frewsburg, Panama Methodist Church, Warren First Church of the Nazarene, and Living Faith Bible Church.
"Conduit continues to be a place that believes in the future of Jamestown," Lienhart said. "We have a lot of hope for this area and want to be a part of displaying and communicating that Jamestown is a great place to live and that we're here to serve the community."