Hospital staff creates Thanksgiving baskets
Staff members throughout different departments at National Park Medical Center teamed up to make Thanksgiving special for those in need in the community.
What originally started as an idea at Living Waters Church of God to give 100 baskets of food to those in need throughout Hot Springs this Thanksgiving quickly grew to a community effort.
“I had intentions of asking my co-worker Marsha Tucker to make a Thanksgiving basket, but when she heard the idea, she thought the whole department should participate,” said Living Waters church member and ICU nurse Sheila Paskell.
Paskell said staff of the Intensive Care Unit, CVICU, Emergency Department, Respiratory Therapy and the Laboratory have all joined in.
“We have 20 baskets, but I hope to have 30 or 40 to turn in,” she said.
Baskets were filled with essential Thanksgiving meal items including canned vegetables, cake and cornbread mixes, cranberry sauce, eggs, milk, and a turkey added before delivery.
Since the second week of October, individuals and groups made baskets to distribute. Members of Living Waters’ World Missions Ministry and Women of Purpose canvased the surrounding neighborhoods for anyone in need of a basket. Baskets were blessed during a church service on Nov. 19.
Anything not distributed, Paskell said, will be taken to area food pantries.
“This really is a ministry tool,” she said. “We want people to come worship with us. We do several community and
networking events to reach people.”
And the response and participation with the Thanksgiving Baskets has been overwhelmingly positive, she said.
“It has been so exciting to see people wanting to see others blessed this Thanksgiving,” she said. “Our goal was 100 baskets, and I think we will meet that. People’s kindness is overwhelming.”