Free Thanksgiving food boxes attract big crowd
GREENSBORO — You didn’t need unemployment figures or foreclosure data to see evidence of economic need Tuesday. It was lined up on Lawndale Drive.
More than a thousand people descended upon Lawndale Baptist Church for a shot at one of the 1,000 free Thanksgiving dinners.
Many began lining up at breakfast time even though the giveaway didn’t start until after noon.
Not everyone got a ham; some people were still in line when the food-packed boxes ran out. Those who got a ham were grateful.
Montressa Tanner of Greensboro used one word to describe what her Thanksgiving meal would have included otherwise.
“Nothing,” she said.
She and her husband had been homeless, she said. They recently found a place to live, but they don’t have much else.
As the giveaway proceeded, a steady stream of people filed through the church gymnasium, directed to numbered tables piled high with boxes.
Outside, standing in the packed parking lot, Vanessa Martinez peeled the tape off her box to see what she had received.
Times have been difficult since the Greensboro resident has been out of work. Her husband is retired, and they’re on a fixed income.
Inside the box was the ham, sweet potatoes, some other sides — a whole meal.
“I was hoping for a ham,” Martinez said.
She counted herself blessed. She’d heard about the giveaway on the local news, which was unusual, because she typically watches CNN.
“It’s a blessing from God,” she said. “It was almost like God directed me so that I could be here.”
The Rev. Joe Giaritelli, the church’s pastor, expressed a mix of feelings at the sight of so many people willing to wait in line for food.
“It saddens me ... there is this much need,” he said. “But it gladdens me that people responded.”
Church members raised more than $10,000 to buy the hams.
Adults and children contributed, some doing less in terms of Christmas presents to contribute more to the giveaway.
After the last box was handed out, about an hour after the event began, Giaritelli gathered the volunteers who had worked to distribute the food.
“I am proud to be your pastor,” he said.
Outside, the parking lot was nearly empty.
The traffic on Lawndale was flowing again.
Contact Jason Hardin at 373-7021 or at jason.hardin@news-record.com
Accompanying Photos
Photo Caption: Tamekia Rodgers (left) receives a box of food including ham Tuesday from David Ayers and Tracy Isley at Lawndale Baptist Church in Greensboro.
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