Ministry to serve holiday meals to needy

2,000 turkey dinners will be available Saturday

SAN LUIS, Ariz. — Volunteer and members of the congregation of Gethsemani Church will be serving 2,000 free turkey dinners in this city in a belated celebration of Thanksgiving on Saturday.

This marks the 15th year that the church’s food ministry has organized the dinner in what the church’s pastor, Manuel Castro, said is foremost a celebration “to thank God and the community.”

Thanks to sponsors, the church is able to exceed last year’s total of 1,600 Thanksgiving meals served, Castro said.

Starting Friday night, he said, volunteers and congregation members will cook 80 turkeys for the dinners, which will also include potatoes, salad and rolls. The Gadsden Elementary School District is making available ovens in its school kitchens to cook the meals.

The Thanksgiving meal will be served from 10 a.m. to noon in the church’s parking lot, 1010 E. B St., for people who have the choice of eating there or carry out their meals.

“Any person or family who wants one can come to ask for one,” said Castro. “They can come here on foot or in their car and they’ll be served.”

The church also will be distributing 400 of the meals beginning at 8 a.m. to farmworkers before they board labor buses to go to work, he added.

“Any person or family who wants one can come to ask for one. They can come here on foot or in their car and they’ll be served.”

LOANED PHOTO GETHSEMANI CHURCH PASTOR Jose Manuel Castro holds one of the turkeys his church prepared and served in a prior year’s Thanksgiving dinner that the church offered to the public.