Thanksgiving Spirit in Athens: A Community’s Commitment to Giving
In Athens, the spirit of Thanksgiving extends beyond family gatherings to community service, thanks to the annual Turkeypalooza event. Now in its thirteenth year, this initiative addresses food insecurity by providing Thanksgiving meals to those in need.
Organized by the Athens Community Council on Aging, Turkeypalooza collaborates with the University of Georgia’s Campus Kitchen and Epting Events to make this event a success. The extensive preparations span several weeks before Thanksgiving and engage nearly 300 volunteers from the local community, including students, faculty, and staff.
The volunteers’ efforts include a wide range of activities from collecting canned goods to cooking turkeys and delivering meals. This past weekend saw the fruition of their hard work, as Campus Kitchen volunteers prepared over 100 Thanksgiving meals and assembled more than 200 grocery bags for distribution.
