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American Rescue Workers hand out homemade Thanksgiving meals

Volunteers with the American Rescue Workers Williamsport will again hand out to-go Thanksgiving meals today.

"Prior to the pandemic, we had the American Rescue Workers dining room open for sit down meals on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter Monday. But post-pandemic, we've done walk-up or drive-thru meals where individuals can come and take as many meals as they need to feed their family," said Valerie Fessler, director of development and community engagement at American Rescue Workers Williamsport.

The annual event feeds more than 300 people in need.

"Each year, Chef Mark Williams tries to stick to a traditional Thanksgiving menu with his own personal tweaks and recipes. So this year we will be having turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green bean casserole, rolls, cranberry sauce and we have a local family who prepares all of the pumpkin pies for the Thanksgiving meal," Fessler said.

The ARW has a full commercial kitchen where they service 70 homeless shelter residents at breakfast, lunch and dinner each day.

"In addition to preparing the 300 meals for the community, we will also prepare the Thanksgiving meal for all of the residents of our three homeless shelters," Fessler added.

The preparation for Thanksgiving Day begins well ahead of time, as Chef Williams, kitchen operations manager, begins collecting items such as canned goods throughout the summer.

This year, members of the community also stepped up and donated to help provide for the big day.

"Tony's Deli donated 48 turkeys that we received for the meal. We did a Facebook post and we were fortunate enough to have individuals from the community donating things like the potatoes, the macaroni and cheese, the cranberry sauce, all those types of odds and ends," Fessler said.

Legion Riders Muncy also provide all of the to-go materials, such as styrofoam containers, silverware and napkins.

"We've been pretty fortunate to have a community effort behind us to get this done," Fessler said.

Other members of the community have come in to help with the physical labor as well.

"We had a group from Hudock Capital who came in and did a majority of the prep work. I cut up all the bread for the stuffing; they made the macaroni and cheese. They did the cranberry sauce and the little plastic containers…so they really helped us get a jumpstart on everything that we needed to do this," Fessler said. "We also have a family -- a husband and wife who come in every year and they will debone all of the turkey…they will take the meat off of all 50 turkeys that Chef Mark has prepared, and they come in for three full 10-hour days to make sure that is taken care of," she added.

Individuals are welcome to either walk or drive up to the center at 643 Elmira St., Williamsport, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for meals today.

"We also have meals available for individuals who are unable to come to the shelter because they don't have transportation. They can call in advance and be put on the list for Thanksgiving Day deliveries. We deliver the meals right to their home," Fessler said ahead of the holiday.

"American Rescue Workers have been serving the community and serving meals to the community in some capacity in Williamsport since 1934. And while that has evolved over the years, we're so thankful to be able to have the resources and work in the community, to be able to continue to provide this service to the community -- especially at a time when a lot of individuals who have not needed assistance in the past are needing it this year, maybe for the first time. We're thrilled to be able to serve our community in that capacity," Fessler said.

To donate to American Rescue Workers Williamsport, visit www.arwwilliamsport.org or find them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AmericanRescueWorkers.