A FEAST FOR HUB’S NEEDY
‘Humbling’ Thanksgiving serves 1,000
Snorting cocaine and heroin led to a difficult stint on the streets for Corey James. But he managed to sober up and now has a new lease on life.
“I’ve been clean and sober for two years,” said James, who works for a Somerville plumbing and heating company and credited his boss for giving him a chance to turn his life around.
“It’s been keeping me off the streets, and off the drugs and out of trouble.”
James, 21, was one of about 1,000 homeless or formerly homeless people who attended a Thanksgiving feast for the needy yesterday on the floor of the TD Garden.
Organizers said they were ready to serve 700 pounds of turkey, 500 pounds of stuffing, 350 pounds of vegetables, 10 gallons of cranberry sauce and a 500-pound pumpkin pie.
The Garden Neighborhood Charities hosted the 22nd annual event, dubbed “Table of Friends.”
Alice Myers, 59, said she battled homelessness for decades after the home she lived in with her mother caught fire and she was left with “nowhere to go.”
She now has been off the streets for three years and yesterday attended the event and said she gladly helped retrieve full plates for people.
“This is a nice Thanksgiving. They don’t want to be in the shelters or living on the streets,” Myers said.
“There are a lot of homeless people out here and they need help. Half of the shelters are full and they are dying in the streets,” she said. “The Man upstairs gave me somewhere to go — it’s a blessing.”
Officials such as Attorney General Maura Healey, Boston police Commissioner William B. Evans, and MBTA Police Chief Kenneth Green helped served food and smiles at the event.
BPD Super-intendent-in-Chief William G. Gross said he was “honored” to dole out warm plates.
“It’s very humbling,” Gross said. “At one point or another in our lives, we all needed a little helping hand . ... This is a way to give back to the community — those who are less fortunate than us.”