Thanksgiving drive serves up dinners for over 200 people

Meals have been brought to 74 families’ tables for Thanksgiving this week through the efforts of a local charity drive.

The annual Thanksgiving basket drive organized by the Wrangell Ministerial Association has for each of the past sixteen years provided traditional meals to hundreds of residents. Donations of cash and goods from community members are pooled together to assemble turkeys, dressing, vegetables and other sides for a family feast.

Don and Bonnie Roher, Damon and Eva Roher, and Mike and Jennifer Bates this year packed and distributed the goods, in time for the holiday last Friday. Don Roher estimated this year’s collection pulled together $4,219 worth of food, much of it from local businesses.

“We couldn’t have done it without the great generosity of our two local grocery stores,” he said.

Beneficiaries are often nominated by friends or neighbors, and the volunteers contact recipients to let them know a meal is coming their way. “A lot of families adopted families,” Roher said. Of the 74 households receiving parcels, there were 218 people between them. Some were single-member homes, others full families – of those selected, 86 were children.

Sometimes the meal comes as a surprise.

“There was one highlight that really made my day,” said Roher. One resident new to the community came to collect her turkey. She was about to leave when Bonnie Roher told her there were some more bags to take with her.

“When she looked in those bags and saw what was there, she grinned from ear to ear,” Don recalled, grinning himself.

Once the meals had been either picked up or delivered, Roher estimated a case and a half of food had been left over. That and whatever cash is left over will go to the local Salvation Army for its own basket drive before Christmas. That drive kicks off next month, and will be providing both meals and toys to area families.