WESTLAKE, Ohio — For many, Thanksgiving is about good food and being around people you care about. It’s meant to be a joyful time but can be challenging, especially for people facing financial hardship.
The nonprofit Thanksgiving Heroes Cleveland is again working to help people whip up a home-cooked meal for the holiday.
Friday morning, pallets of food were dropped off at a warehouse in Westlake.
"This is all volunteerism,” said Shannon Fowls with Thanksgiving Heroes Cleveland.
For the past few years, the organization has gathered to stuff boxes of all sorts of items to pull off a traditional Thanksgiving meal, including a frozen turkey.
I was with the team last year on their packing day.
Watch News 5's original report from 2023, when volunteers were packing boxes with food.
RELATED: 'A bunch of good neighbors, helping neighbors': Thanksgiving Heroes to deliver 2,000 meals
Fowls told me then, "Our goal here is to make sure no child goes hungry at Thanksgiving."
And because we’ve seen reports of need increasing everywhere, I decided to check in this year.
"The need is definitely greater than in years past that we've done this. We're gonna go ahead and deliver 2,000 Thanksgiving meals directly to the homes of people in need.”
Fowls said taking the food to people nominated by community groups, churches, schools and local leaders makes their operation unique.
Next Saturday, more than 200 volunteers will load the food boxes into the vehicles and deliver them across Northeast Ohio.
Fowls said those volunteers always come back with powerful stories.
“They've been invited into the people's homes. Sometimes it's hugs… sometimes it's tears but our volunteers leave here feel feeling a little bit different that day,” Fowls said.
Alexandra Roma with Thanksgiving Heroes Clevelandtold me while 2,000 boxes is a significant number, they’d like to do more.
“I'm getting addresses sent to me, and I have to respond every time saying, “I'm sorry. We're at capacity this year,’” Roma said. “We're not at capacity because we don't have the warehouse space. We're not at capacity because we don't have volunteers. We can't do it because we don't have the funding."
This year, the group raised more than 100,000 through activities like a gun raffle at Mulligan's Pub & Grille in Avon, a golf outing at FoxCreek Golf & Racquet Club in Lorain and a cigar and bourbon night at Vermilion Boat Club.
Fowls said the organization is building new partnerships to increase donations for next year’s giveaway.
"I said, ‘My door is open,’” said Elyria Mayor Kevin Brubaker, who’s offering his support. “We're gonna get together in February and have a sit-down and talk about what does that look like. We'd like to introduce them to five or, six or seven partners that might be willing to help financially support them.
Brubaker said the generosity goes a long way in making a difference in the community.
“Particularly, I can speak to Elyria. We have families in need just like everybody has and to give them a little extra boost here in the holiday season to kick off the holiday season with Thanksgiving and been able to have a dinner with their family is a huge emotional [and] positive support for residents.”
Fowls is humbled by everyone who’s stepped up to be a good neighbor.
“You know it’s real easy to see a problem and say, ‘Boy, somebody should do something about that,’” Fowls said. “I would rather see somebody say, ‘Man, I could do something about that. Let me help’ and that's what's neat about our volunteers."
Thanksgiving Heroes Cleveland buys food at cost from a grocer, and everything from the boxes they fill to the warehouse they work out of is donated.
Fowls said he couldn’t pull it off without the help of many, including TES Engineering, D & D Moving, Eaton Fabricating, Honey Dudes, Rite Rug, Miller Home Title, Chase Group Real Estate, Moe's Southwest Grill-Avon, and Ray Gidich Heating & Air Conditioning.
