Bill Robinson
“Not everybody can go to grandma’s for Thanksgiving,” said Syble Miller of Home Meals Delivery.
For those who have no one with which to share a Thanksgiving meal, a church in Richmond and another in Berea are hosting a community dinner.
For those who cannot get out, Home Meals will bring them a dinner, as will the organizers of the two church dinners.
Rosedale Baptist Church in Richmond and Berea Baptist Church both will be serving turkey and dressing at noon on Thursday for those who cannot share Thanksgiving with their loved ones.
Home Meals Delivery in Richmond and Helping Hands Ministry in Berea will be delivering the turkey and dressing to those who cannot get out.
Both churches say no reservation is required, but asked those who know they will be coming to call by Wednesday to aid in planning.
Rosedale’s phone number is 623-1771. The number for Berea Baptist is 986-9391.
To receive a dinner from Home Meals Delivery, call the Madison County Fire Department at 624-4775 or the Berea Fire Department at 986-2898.
Last year, Home Meals Delivery delivered about 350 Thanksgiving meals, said Syble Miller, the program’s coordinator.
“Home Meals Delivery began with a Thanksgiving dinner in 1980, and we’ve been doing this ever since,” she said.
The program relies on volunteers from churches, civic clubs and others to deliver about 60 meals daily. Many more volunteers are need on Thanksgiving Day, however, when the number of meals delivered jumps by almost six fold, Miller said.
“We just put the word out for volunteers through the churches and the newspaper, and every year we always have enough help,” she said.
Delivery volunteers for Thanksgiving do not need to call ahead. They just need to show up around 10:30 a.m. at the Baptist Campus Ministries building at the intersection of Kit Carson Drive and University Drive with an insulated box or cooler to keep the meals warm until they are delivered, Miller said.
International students who attended Eastern Kentucky University and have no place to go for Thanksgiving are invited to eat at the BCM, she said.
Rosedale Baptist served about 50 Thanksgiving dinners last year, and Berea Baptist served almost 100, according to the organizers.
While the Berea dinner is served at Berea Baptist on Chestnut Street, others churches are involved, said Stacey Kennedy.
“This isn’t just a Berea Baptist effort,” she said. “Volunteers from several churches come together to make this happen.”
Jane Sizemore, a caterer whose Helping Hands Ministry delivers meals to shut-ins every Saturday, is coordinating the food preparation in Berea, Kennedy said.
Helping Hands also will be making deliveries on Thanksgiving, she said.
The meal will feature turkey and dressing, plus a few other favorites, such as broccoli casserole, which was a big hit last year, Kennedy said.
For Rosedale, this will be the church’s ninth year to serve a community Thanksgiving dinner, said Robin Hensley.
“This originally was my husband’s idea,” she said. “More than nine years ago, he said, ‘Let’s do something different for Thanksgiving.’ We talked it over with my mother, who like the idea. We then proposed it to the church, which has been very supportive every year.”
“We used to go to my grandmother’s for Thanksgiving,” Hensley said. “Now that she’s no longer with us, we know she’s smiling down on us as we serve others the kind of Thanksgiving meal she used to prepare for us.”
For those who cannot get to the church, meals will be delivered or volunteers will bring them to the church, Hensley said.
“Don’t be afraid to come just because you don’t know anybody at Rosedale,” Hensley said. “After a couple of minutes, nobody will be a stranger. We make a special effort to talk with everyone and make them feel welcome.”
In addition to turkey, dressing and cranberry sauce, deviled eggs is on the menu at Rosedale this year, she said.
Bill Robinson can be reached at brobinson@richmondregister.com or at 624-6622.
