Second Harvest Food Bank needs another 5,000 plus turkeys before Thanksgiving
With Thanksgiving just around the corner, Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties needs turkeys so that local pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters that depend on Second Harvest for food can provide their clients with a traditional holiday meal. This year’s goal is 12,000 turkeys and Second Harvest still needs more than 5,600 turkeys.
Turkeys can be dropped off at Second Harvest Food Bank’s Curtner Center in San Jose (750 Curtner Avenue) and Bing Center in San Carlos (1051 Bing Street). The Food Bank has extended its dock hours to make donating easier. Turkeys should not be placed in the food collection barrels located throughout the community.
“Turkey is a traditional holiday meal for many local families, so we are depending on the community to help us meet our turkey goal,” said Kathy Jackson, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank (pictured). “We also need monetary donations to help feed our hungry neighbors long after the holidays are over. The Food Bank continues to face unprecedented need despite the improving economy. The number of people Second Harvest serves jumped 50 percent after the recession started and has continued to rise every year since.”
In addition to the high need, inventory at the Food Bank is lower than normal at this time of year.
“The shelves at Second Harvest are getting a little bare, and that is concerning,” Jackson said. “Monetary donations can go a long way toward helping us fill those shelves. With our purchasing power, Second Harvest can turn a one dollar donation into the equivalent of two nutritious meals.”
Second Harvest’s Curtner Center dock is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the week; from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, November 23; and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, November 24. Second Harvest’s Bing Center dock is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the week and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, November 23.
For more information about holiday dock hours or to make a donation, visit http://www.SHFB.org or call (866) 234-3663. Anyone who needs food should call Second Harvest’s Food Connection hotline at (800) 984-3663.
Photo of Kathy Jackson by Scott Loftesness in 2011
