Feeding the Homeless People in the City Parks of Tucson, Arizona.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Christmas Eve with the Homeless 2013
What a Miracle tonight was !! :)
The 17 Deep Dish Pizzas added up to being able to feed 68 people this evening, which is quite a bunch. When we got to the first park there were more than a normal amount of people there & we were plowing through those pizzas pretty quickly. I kept thinking I need to go to buy some more near the second park, as I had a feeling we would run out, at the rate we were dishing out the pieces.
When we got to the second park there were another huge amount of people and I kept saying that I need to buy more pizzas to be able to feed everyone in line. :) Normally the people at the second park get seconds and the left-overs after everyone had their first portions.
Here is where the Miracle comes in .... we fed exactly 68 people. That's how many homeless showed up altogether & that's the exact amount of pizza we had. :) And all that on Christmas Eve !! :)
I had many helpers tonight, which made everything quite easy. Three ladies from R & R Rescue (Reclaimed & Repurposed Pooches) came to help & to bring cookies, and so did my friend Buck, who has baked many cookies and cakes for the Homeless throughout the years. :) Marilyn stopped by for a little bit to say "hi" to everyone & to meet some of the Doggie People, as I call you all affectionally. :)
Thank you Dolly Fernandes, Deena Singer, April Vanderpol & Buck Bannister for your loving support this evening !! :) It was fun to meet you & to now have faces to go with your names. And thank you for all the incredible cookies & the Love you put into each one !! :) Most will go into the backpacks for this coming Saturday. :)
Dolly, a special thank you goes to you for rallying everyone together to bake cookies & for your awesome job in organizing to bring dog bowls and dog treats for the homeless doggies in the parks. :)
All the blankets, comforters and sleeping bags were gone by the end of the night, except for one blanket and a couple of shirts. We could have used a bunch more warm jackets though, so if anyone would like to donate some, I am happy to take them this coming Saturday. :)
Wishing each and everyone of you a very special Christmas, and I will sign off with lots of Gratitude for all your Open Hearts for our People in the City Parks !! :)
Sleep with the Angels !! :)
The 17 Deep Dish Pizzas added up to being able to feed 68 people this evening, which is quite a bunch. When we got to the first park there were more than a normal amount of people there & we were plowing through those pizzas pretty quickly. I kept thinking I need to go to buy some more near the second park, as I had a feeling we would run out, at the rate we were dishing out the pieces.
When we got to the second park there were another huge amount of people and I kept saying that I need to buy more pizzas to be able to feed everyone in line. :) Normally the people at the second park get seconds and the left-overs after everyone had their first portions.
Here is where the Miracle comes in .... we fed exactly 68 people. That's how many homeless showed up altogether & that's the exact amount of pizza we had. :) And all that on Christmas Eve !! :)
I had many helpers tonight, which made everything quite easy. Three ladies from R & R Rescue (Reclaimed & Repurposed Pooches) came to help & to bring cookies, and so did my friend Buck, who has baked many cookies and cakes for the Homeless throughout the years. :) Marilyn stopped by for a little bit to say "hi" to everyone & to meet some of the Doggie People, as I call you all affectionally. :)
Thank you Dolly Fernandes, Deena Singer, April Vanderpol & Buck Bannister for your loving support this evening !! :) It was fun to meet you & to now have faces to go with your names. And thank you for all the incredible cookies & the Love you put into each one !! :) Most will go into the backpacks for this coming Saturday. :)
Dolly, a special thank you goes to you for rallying everyone together to bake cookies & for your awesome job in organizing to bring dog bowls and dog treats for the homeless doggies in the parks. :)
All the blankets, comforters and sleeping bags were gone by the end of the night, except for one blanket and a couple of shirts. We could have used a bunch more warm jackets though, so if anyone would like to donate some, I am happy to take them this coming Saturday. :)
Wishing each and everyone of you a very special Christmas, and I will sign off with lots of Gratitude for all your Open Hearts for our People in the City Parks !! :)
Sleep with the Angels !! :)
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Stuffing 72 Backpacks - Part 1
All 72 backpacks are stuffed and are almost ready to go to the parks for the Homeless people for Christmas, except for adding all the cookies, which I will do in a few days, so they will be fresh. :)
We will deliver everything on Saturday, December 28th, along with a great big Christmas dinner. :)
It took seven of us close to four hours to get it all done and you can see photos below of the before and after. :) Thank you Sue, Marilyn, Laura & Steve, Cristina & your brother Gabe, for putting your whole hearts into this !! :) What a team you all were !! :) I am amazed !!
We packed those bags full of 60 hand crochet beanies by Cheryl, who has been working on them this whole year. :) She is now crocheting more already for next years Christmas. :)
K.C. motivated many people in her Crafts Club to knit scarves for the Homeless and here are some of their stories:
Laurie Mullins works on scarves when her leg hurts too much to do anything else. She finds some yarn in her stash and then spends the day in bed working on scarves. :)
Tina Roose learned how to crochet on YouTube. She buys yarn at Goodwill and practices by making scarves. :)
Patricia Gellin has made the scarves during her lunch break. :)
Lori Blew began to crochet again after a 20 year hiatus to make these scarves. :)
Ian, Lori's husband, "brochets" and does a scarf every now and then to clean his pallet between projects. :)
Margaret Newman just loves to crochet and feels she should use up her stash, because that way she can get more yarn. :)
Sue Lynn Halloway Turner who just read about the project of the scarves on Facebook, made a few and mailed them from Texas. :)
Kelsey Henderson did the same and made a few. :)
KarenYasher made several and would have done more but found out that two of her nieces were having babies. So she knitted baby stuff instead. :) Congratulations !!
And K.C., who does not like to knit at all, bought a few to donate. :)
June, from Hilde's knitting club, made two bunches also, so we had enough for each backpack. :)
Thank you to all you kind souls for your beautiful work & the loving dedication to this project of keeping the Homeless a lil' warmer this year. :)
Randy Seligmann of Chiral Research, donated warm socks and warm gloves, along with a gift card to Fry's, which helped so much with buying the candy and some food. :)
Eleanor Miller donated money and I was able to buy the T-shirts and sweatshirts with it. :)
A very, very generous donation from the BSD Winers & Diners helped with being able to get all the men's and women's underwear, the backpacks, and a lot of odds and ends that were still needed. :)
The Ahmidiya Muslim Community here in Tucson just blew me away again this year by donating 65 each of the Deodorants, Shampoo, Conditioners, Shaving Cream, Razors, Bars of Soap, Decks of Playing Cards, Candy, Chocolates, some Used Books and Magazines, some Toothpastes and Toothbrushes. And the children of the Mosque with the help of Ulliya made many hand-made and very precious Christmas cards to stuff into the backpacks. :)
Pat Bovine too wrote a lot of Christmas cards again this year and she mailed them to me all the way from Arkansas this year. Pat, this is becoming a tradition for you. :)
The children of the Boys & Girls Club of Tucson made a lot of cards too with the help of Jasmine there. :)
Ashley Brock's First Graders made cards too and it was kind of hard for me to part with them. :) They were just really adorable & their spelling was the cutest ever. :)
Many different items were donated by the sweet Ladies from the St. Joseph Rosary Makers. It was so nice to finally meet you all and to be able to spend a little time with you. :) Thank you Elena for always being the "Instigator" for all these Kindnesses. :) And it was wonderful to be able to take all those warm jackets to the Homeless people too right around the time it got so cold. :)
Big thanks to each and everyone of you for helping make all of this possible & for your beautiful, open and caring Hearts !! :)
To be continued .............
We will deliver everything on Saturday, December 28th, along with a great big Christmas dinner. :)
It took seven of us close to four hours to get it all done and you can see photos below of the before and after. :) Thank you Sue, Marilyn, Laura & Steve, Cristina & your brother Gabe, for putting your whole hearts into this !! :) What a team you all were !! :) I am amazed !!
We packed those bags full of 60 hand crochet beanies by Cheryl, who has been working on them this whole year. :) She is now crocheting more already for next years Christmas. :)
K.C. motivated many people in her Crafts Club to knit scarves for the Homeless and here are some of their stories:
Laurie Mullins works on scarves when her leg hurts too much to do anything else. She finds some yarn in her stash and then spends the day in bed working on scarves. :)
Tina Roose learned how to crochet on YouTube. She buys yarn at Goodwill and practices by making scarves. :)
Patricia Gellin has made the scarves during her lunch break. :)
Lori Blew began to crochet again after a 20 year hiatus to make these scarves. :)
Ian, Lori's husband, "brochets" and does a scarf every now and then to clean his pallet between projects. :)
Margaret Newman just loves to crochet and feels she should use up her stash, because that way she can get more yarn. :)
Sue Lynn Halloway Turner who just read about the project of the scarves on Facebook, made a few and mailed them from Texas. :)
Kelsey Henderson did the same and made a few. :)
KarenYasher made several and would have done more but found out that two of her nieces were having babies. So she knitted baby stuff instead. :) Congratulations !!
And K.C., who does not like to knit at all, bought a few to donate. :)
June, from Hilde's knitting club, made two bunches also, so we had enough for each backpack. :)
Thank you to all you kind souls for your beautiful work & the loving dedication to this project of keeping the Homeless a lil' warmer this year. :)
Randy Seligmann of Chiral Research, donated warm socks and warm gloves, along with a gift card to Fry's, which helped so much with buying the candy and some food. :)
Eleanor Miller donated money and I was able to buy the T-shirts and sweatshirts with it. :)
A very, very generous donation from the BSD Winers & Diners helped with being able to get all the men's and women's underwear, the backpacks, and a lot of odds and ends that were still needed. :)
The Ahmidiya Muslim Community here in Tucson just blew me away again this year by donating 65 each of the Deodorants, Shampoo, Conditioners, Shaving Cream, Razors, Bars of Soap, Decks of Playing Cards, Candy, Chocolates, some Used Books and Magazines, some Toothpastes and Toothbrushes. And the children of the Mosque with the help of Ulliya made many hand-made and very precious Christmas cards to stuff into the backpacks. :)
Pat Bovine too wrote a lot of Christmas cards again this year and she mailed them to me all the way from Arkansas this year. Pat, this is becoming a tradition for you. :)
The children of the Boys & Girls Club of Tucson made a lot of cards too with the help of Jasmine there. :)
Ashley Brock's First Graders made cards too and it was kind of hard for me to part with them. :) They were just really adorable & their spelling was the cutest ever. :)
Many different items were donated by the sweet Ladies from the St. Joseph Rosary Makers. It was so nice to finally meet you all and to be able to spend a little time with you. :) Thank you Elena for always being the "Instigator" for all these Kindnesses. :) And it was wonderful to be able to take all those warm jackets to the Homeless people too right around the time it got so cold. :)
Big thanks to each and everyone of you for helping make all of this possible & for your beautiful, open and caring Hearts !! :)
To be continued .............
Stuffing 72 Backpacks - Part 2
Continuation ........................
Dave and Linda Mann, thank you so much for the candy, combs, books and Granola Bars. It helped out a lot !! :)
Cristina Ball, thank you for all the wet wipes & for buying all those blankets & sleeping bags at the thrift store for the Homeless !! :) What a great idea !! :)
Alison Newman, thank you for knitting a bunch of warm fingerless gloves, plus scarves and caps !! Also for donating a lot of odds and ends that we needed for stuffing the bags. :) It was sweet how you wrapped all the gloves with pretty ribbons. :)
Marilyn Rubin, my faithful helper, thank you for the running around you did to find the T-shirts, sweatshirts, and the socks for the ladies !! :) Also thank you Alvin for the cookies and granola bars !! :)
Sue Bradford, thank you my friend, for the extra socks !! :)
Dr. Kronlage, a big thank you for donating all those snack items for the Homeless !! It was so wonderful to stuff them all into the backpacks. :)
Laura Kakuris and Steve, thank you for donating some of the Christmas candy this year !! :)
Sadie, your help with the toothpastes and toothbrushes is much appreciated & please come back to the parks with us soon !! :)
Nicole and Nathan Mitchell, thank you for picking up the slack of the last toothpastes and toothbrushes !! :) It all rounded out in the end.
I also would like to thank the people from Hilde's church for donating some of the items needed to fill the backpacks. :)
And another great big thank you goes out to Buck Bannister & Michael, Mara Concordia, Cristina Ball, Nicole & Nathan Mitchell, and Inna Rohr, for all those warm blankets and sleeping bags you brought over for the people in the parks !! :) I so appreciate that some of you even went to thrift shops to find them !! :)
Sending a great big thank you hug to each of you wonderful people for helping with this project and for all the Love you gifted the Homeless with this Season !! :)
I am ever so grateful to each one of you !! :)
Dave and Linda Mann, thank you so much for the candy, combs, books and Granola Bars. It helped out a lot !! :)
Cristina Ball, thank you for all the wet wipes & for buying all those blankets & sleeping bags at the thrift store for the Homeless !! :) What a great idea !! :)
Alison Newman, thank you for knitting a bunch of warm fingerless gloves, plus scarves and caps !! Also for donating a lot of odds and ends that we needed for stuffing the bags. :) It was sweet how you wrapped all the gloves with pretty ribbons. :)
Marilyn Rubin, my faithful helper, thank you for the running around you did to find the T-shirts, sweatshirts, and the socks for the ladies !! :) Also thank you Alvin for the cookies and granola bars !! :)
Sue Bradford, thank you my friend, for the extra socks !! :)
Dr. Kronlage, a big thank you for donating all those snack items for the Homeless !! It was so wonderful to stuff them all into the backpacks. :)
Laura Kakuris and Steve, thank you for donating some of the Christmas candy this year !! :)
Sadie, your help with the toothpastes and toothbrushes is much appreciated & please come back to the parks with us soon !! :)
Nicole and Nathan Mitchell, thank you for picking up the slack of the last toothpastes and toothbrushes !! :) It all rounded out in the end.
I also would like to thank the people from Hilde's church for donating some of the items needed to fill the backpacks. :)
And another great big thank you goes out to Buck Bannister & Michael, Mara Concordia, Cristina Ball, Nicole & Nathan Mitchell, and Inna Rohr, for all those warm blankets and sleeping bags you brought over for the people in the parks !! :) I so appreciate that some of you even went to thrift shops to find them !! :)
Sending a great big thank you hug to each of you wonderful people for helping with this project and for all the Love you gifted the Homeless with this Season !! :)
I am ever so grateful to each one of you !! :)
Saturday, December 14, 2013
Sausage & Vegetable Stew, Tossed Salad & Home Baked Brownies
In a car loaded up with lots of hot food, many warm jackets, blankets and comforters, I headed to the two parks. :)
It is so chilly now at night and the homeless sleep on the cold ground, so please help me to gather blankets, sleeping bags, even comforters, or mattress pads. They can be used already & the homeless so appreciate them. If you don't mind, please also ask your friends to see what is in their closets that they don't really use. Warm jackets are always needed too. If you can bring them to my home I then will gladly take them to the parks & distribute them. :) Thank you for helping out !! :)
Faith, my Cooking Angel, and I made a stick to your ribs Sausage & Vegetable Stew today, which included 12 lbs. of Kielbasa, 15 lbs. of potatoes and 7 lbs. of carrots and we fed 40 people tonight. Someone else was at Santa Rita Park serving a Stir Fry and many of the homeless had been eating already when we got there around 5 PM. So we didn't feed too many people today. Some of the homeless from the second park were working at the Street Fair to pick up a little money. But 40 people have a full belly tonight & some have warm jackets & blankets. :) It's a good feeling. :)
Nicole & Nathan came by my home today to bring two big containers of home baked Brownies for tonight's meal. They were wonderful & we all had some too. :) You know I pay my helpers with brownies & cookies. ;) It was so nice to meet you both & I am so grateful for your loving support !! :)
Sadie came by the park to bring some items she is donating for the Christmas event on December 28th. Sadie, thank you for stopping by & for wanting to help so much !! :) It was really nice to meet you also today !! :)
Gerry & Kim came back to the parks to help with serving the food & it was wonderful to have you both with Marilyn & I. We make a wonderful team & I hope you will come back over & over again !! :) :) Thank you for your caring help !! And Gerry, your sweet smile !! :)
Dave & Linda, thank you again for contributing some of the groceries for this meal & Dave thank you for loading up my car with a lot of stuff today !! :) You are so appreciated always !! :)
Marilyn, my loyal Friend, I always so appreciate your cleaning up all those big pots & utensils, etc., and for helping serve all those hungry people. :) You are awesome and I know that you give up other activities to be there for this and that makes me even more grateful !! :)
The next meal will be pizza on Christmas Eve. :)
Good Night now to you all & sleep with the Angels !! :)
It is so chilly now at night and the homeless sleep on the cold ground, so please help me to gather blankets, sleeping bags, even comforters, or mattress pads. They can be used already & the homeless so appreciate them. If you don't mind, please also ask your friends to see what is in their closets that they don't really use. Warm jackets are always needed too. If you can bring them to my home I then will gladly take them to the parks & distribute them. :) Thank you for helping out !! :)
Faith, my Cooking Angel, and I made a stick to your ribs Sausage & Vegetable Stew today, which included 12 lbs. of Kielbasa, 15 lbs. of potatoes and 7 lbs. of carrots and we fed 40 people tonight. Someone else was at Santa Rita Park serving a Stir Fry and many of the homeless had been eating already when we got there around 5 PM. So we didn't feed too many people today. Some of the homeless from the second park were working at the Street Fair to pick up a little money. But 40 people have a full belly tonight & some have warm jackets & blankets. :) It's a good feeling. :)
Nicole & Nathan came by my home today to bring two big containers of home baked Brownies for tonight's meal. They were wonderful & we all had some too. :) You know I pay my helpers with brownies & cookies. ;) It was so nice to meet you both & I am so grateful for your loving support !! :)
Sadie came by the park to bring some items she is donating for the Christmas event on December 28th. Sadie, thank you for stopping by & for wanting to help so much !! :) It was really nice to meet you also today !! :)
Gerry & Kim came back to the parks to help with serving the food & it was wonderful to have you both with Marilyn & I. We make a wonderful team & I hope you will come back over & over again !! :) :) Thank you for your caring help !! And Gerry, your sweet smile !! :)
Dave & Linda, thank you again for contributing some of the groceries for this meal & Dave thank you for loading up my car with a lot of stuff today !! :) You are so appreciated always !! :)
Marilyn, my loyal Friend, I always so appreciate your cleaning up all those big pots & utensils, etc., and for helping serve all those hungry people. :) You are awesome and I know that you give up other activities to be there for this and that makes me even more grateful !! :)
The next meal will be pizza on Christmas Eve. :)
Good Night now to you all & sleep with the Angels !! :)
Saturday, November 30, 2013
17 Deep Dish Pepperoni Pizzas
Since this is the 5th Saturday this month, I loaded up with 17 Little Caesar Deep Dish Pepperoni Pizzas I headed to the two parks & was welcomed with lots of hollers of "Piiiiiiizzzzzaaaaa" !!!! :) And "oh thank you for not bringing turkey, we are so turkeyed out". "Piiiiiiiizzzzzzaaaaaa" !!" :)
Served 67 people this evening & many even got seconds, which totalled to one half of a big fat deep dish pizza. :) Everyone was really happy, although I could have used more cookies.
I got a call back from Little Caesar earlier today, they wanted to make sure that I was still coming for all 17 pies, which made me giggle, since I have done this for four years now at the same place. :)
Since I was by myself this time I had to ask one homeless person at each park to help serve the cookies & water. :) It was really nice to be able to spend some quality time with each person & to get to know them a little bit better along the way. :)
Not much else to share, except for a bunch of happy homeless once more. :) And me too !! :)
Such a blessing this is each time !!
Served 67 people this evening & many even got seconds, which totalled to one half of a big fat deep dish pizza. :) Everyone was really happy, although I could have used more cookies.
I got a call back from Little Caesar earlier today, they wanted to make sure that I was still coming for all 17 pies, which made me giggle, since I have done this for four years now at the same place. :)
Since I was by myself this time I had to ask one homeless person at each park to help serve the cookies & water. :) It was really nice to be able to spend some quality time with each person & to get to know them a little bit better along the way. :)
Not much else to share, except for a bunch of happy homeless once more. :) And me too !! :)
Such a blessing this is each time !!
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Thanksgiving Dinner of Turkey with all the Trimmings - Continuation
Five roasted turkeys, a tray of stuffing, two big pots of mashed potatoes, two pots of gravy, 36 cans of corn with butter, eight huge cans of green beans with cranberries, a great big tray of Costa Rican rice, ten cans of cranberry sauce, an enormous bowl of Jello with fruit cocktail, six containers of Cool Whip, and lots of cookies all fed 70 people their Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. :) And only just a few leftovers. :)
A really big storm came through here & it rained heavily all day Friday, all night, and it was also raining & quite dreary on Saturday late morning when I got up. The sun never came out on Friday at all, which is quite unusual for us here in Tucson. Many of us, even as far away as Wisconsin, prayed for the rain to stop, at least long enough to feed the homeless, which of course is done outside in parking lots of two City parks.
Kristine & Ray of "Kadooks" Food Truck offered to bring their canopy so the food would stay dry while serving & the homeless would be covered too while eating. :) And thank you both also for bringing all that wonderful Costa Rican rice to share with everyone !! :) You two are awesome & your Lights shine bright !! :) It was so special to have you join all of us for this special occasion. :)
Yesterday, Saturday, around 2 P.M. it stopped raining, started clearing up & the sun started peeking out, especially on the west side, where the parks are. :) Many Thank You prayers were sent "up" & still are today for this great big Miracle. :) The forecast was that it supposed to rain hard all day yesterday & again today on Sunday. Thank you everyone locally for your prayers, and the Wisconsin ones too. :)
Most of the homeless people were surprised to get this early turkey dinner & all were quite grateful. :) Those extra large plates were so full of food, there was no room for anything else on there. It just was so good to know that their bellies were full & that they all were sleeping in dry weather last night. :)
Thank you Marianne, K.C., Teresa, Patty, and Gopal for roasting & carving a turkey each for this meal !! :) I couldn't have pulled this off without your kind help. :) And thank you also for bringing them over to my house during the rainy mess outside. I have some turkey meat left over, which is in the freezer already. It will make a wonderful turkey "stoup" (soup-stew) after the holidays for the homeless, especially some of your smoked turkey, Gopal !! :)
Hilde, thank you for making your great stuffing again this year & your famously smooth & tasteful gravy !! :) Mary Ann, thank you for bringing your Mom over & to the park & thank you both for helping out with the mashed potatoes. :)
Sue, my faithful corn & green beans helper, thank you for filling up the pots with those & for heating them up at your house to cover for the lack of big stove burners, actually more burners altogether. :) We used a lot of great big pots for this meal.
Dave & Linda, thank you for helping with the groceries for this meal too & for even bringing extra this time. It will help with the big Christmas meal, which is coming up quickly. :)
I so appreciate everything you do for the homeless !! :)
Marilyn, you get five stars for the big bowl of Jello with fruit cocktail you made for this occasion, my non-cooking friend !! :) May your burners always be turned on. ;)
Lydia, Lupe, & Bertha thank you for baking all those cookies & for putting them into all those gorgeous bags !! :) What a beautiful sight that was !! :) There will be photos of this after this blog. I bought some more small bags & Marilyn separated the cookies into twice as many baggies, so we had enough for everyone during last nights meal. :)
Cristina, thank you dearly for donating all the cranberry sauce, which went quickly this time around. :)
Marilyn, Hilde & Mary Ann, Gerry & Kim, Teresa & Leticia, Ray & Kristine, my Gratitude goes to all of you for making a wonderful serving line for all the food !! :) You were a great team altogether !! :) And thank you for loading everything in & out of the cars & so quickly too. :)
Marilyn, thank you also for taking pictures & movies again for this blog, some of which are following this. :) We don't have too many pictures, since it gets dark quite early these days, but we have a few & some wonderful short videos. :)
Now onward towards the big Christmas event for the homeless, which will be on December 28th this year. On Christmas Eve I will be going to the two parks with 17 Deep Dish Pizzas, which I ordered today. :)
Happy Thanksgiving to each & everyone of you !! :) My Heart is full of Gratitude to all of you who are always there for me on this adventure of feeding the homeless & hungry !! :) May your Season be blessed with many happy surprises !! :)
A really big storm came through here & it rained heavily all day Friday, all night, and it was also raining & quite dreary on Saturday late morning when I got up. The sun never came out on Friday at all, which is quite unusual for us here in Tucson. Many of us, even as far away as Wisconsin, prayed for the rain to stop, at least long enough to feed the homeless, which of course is done outside in parking lots of two City parks.
Kristine & Ray of "Kadooks" Food Truck offered to bring their canopy so the food would stay dry while serving & the homeless would be covered too while eating. :) And thank you both also for bringing all that wonderful Costa Rican rice to share with everyone !! :) You two are awesome & your Lights shine bright !! :) It was so special to have you join all of us for this special occasion. :)
Yesterday, Saturday, around 2 P.M. it stopped raining, started clearing up & the sun started peeking out, especially on the west side, where the parks are. :) Many Thank You prayers were sent "up" & still are today for this great big Miracle. :) The forecast was that it supposed to rain hard all day yesterday & again today on Sunday. Thank you everyone locally for your prayers, and the Wisconsin ones too. :)
Most of the homeless people were surprised to get this early turkey dinner & all were quite grateful. :) Those extra large plates were so full of food, there was no room for anything else on there. It just was so good to know that their bellies were full & that they all were sleeping in dry weather last night. :)
Thank you Marianne, K.C., Teresa, Patty, and Gopal for roasting & carving a turkey each for this meal !! :) I couldn't have pulled this off without your kind help. :) And thank you also for bringing them over to my house during the rainy mess outside. I have some turkey meat left over, which is in the freezer already. It will make a wonderful turkey "stoup" (soup-stew) after the holidays for the homeless, especially some of your smoked turkey, Gopal !! :)
Hilde, thank you for making your great stuffing again this year & your famously smooth & tasteful gravy !! :) Mary Ann, thank you for bringing your Mom over & to the park & thank you both for helping out with the mashed potatoes. :)
Sue, my faithful corn & green beans helper, thank you for filling up the pots with those & for heating them up at your house to cover for the lack of big stove burners, actually more burners altogether. :) We used a lot of great big pots for this meal.
Dave & Linda, thank you for helping with the groceries for this meal too & for even bringing extra this time. It will help with the big Christmas meal, which is coming up quickly. :)
I so appreciate everything you do for the homeless !! :)
Marilyn, you get five stars for the big bowl of Jello with fruit cocktail you made for this occasion, my non-cooking friend !! :) May your burners always be turned on. ;)
Lydia, Lupe, & Bertha thank you for baking all those cookies & for putting them into all those gorgeous bags !! :) What a beautiful sight that was !! :) There will be photos of this after this blog. I bought some more small bags & Marilyn separated the cookies into twice as many baggies, so we had enough for everyone during last nights meal. :)
Cristina, thank you dearly for donating all the cranberry sauce, which went quickly this time around. :)
Marilyn, Hilde & Mary Ann, Gerry & Kim, Teresa & Leticia, Ray & Kristine, my Gratitude goes to all of you for making a wonderful serving line for all the food !! :) You were a great team altogether !! :) And thank you for loading everything in & out of the cars & so quickly too. :)
Marilyn, thank you also for taking pictures & movies again for this blog, some of which are following this. :) We don't have too many pictures, since it gets dark quite early these days, but we have a few & some wonderful short videos. :)
Now onward towards the big Christmas event for the homeless, which will be on December 28th this year. On Christmas Eve I will be going to the two parks with 17 Deep Dish Pizzas, which I ordered today. :)
Happy Thanksgiving to each & everyone of you !! :) My Heart is full of Gratitude to all of you who are always there for me on this adventure of feeding the homeless & hungry !! :) May your Season be blessed with many happy surprises !! :)
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Thanksgiving Dinner of Turkey with all the Trimmings
We served the Thanksgiving dinner for the homeless today already & we fed 70 people.
I just finished cleaning the kitchen & I'm totally bushed, so I will write a lot more tomorrow. At one point we served the 11,000th plate of food tonight. :) I can't believe it myself !! :)
Good Night everyone & stay warm & dry !! :)
I just finished cleaning the kitchen & I'm totally bushed, so I will write a lot more tomorrow. At one point we served the 11,000th plate of food tonight. :) I can't believe it myself !! :)
Good Night everyone & stay warm & dry !! :)
Saturday, November 9, 2013
Tuna Casserole with Artichoke Hearts & Red Peppers, Tossed Salad & Oreo Cookies
Faith, my Cooking Angel, and I made Tuna Casserole for the first time today. I found a wonderful new recipe that had added many fresh sliced red peppers & artichoke hearts too. :) Whenever we make something with tuna for the homeless it is always really appreciated & this time was no exception. :) The artichoke hearts were a big success too.
We fed 69 people tonight. :) The lines at both parks are getting longer again each time & it feels good to be feeding more people again. With the Thanksgiving meal on November 23rd we will cross 11,000 fed. :o
We were so busy serving that we didn't have time to take pictures this time. :o :)
Tonight was J.J.s last time serving, on a regular basis anyway. J.J. has a new job & has to work on Saturdays now. It makes me sad to lose you J.J., as I knew I could always count on you to be at the parks. :) You knew the routine so well & you always made it easy for Marilyn & me. :) Thank you for all the hours you dedicated to this & please come back anytime you get out of work early !! :) It will not be the same without you !!
Thank you Cheryl for all the Oreo cookies you donated !! They all got eaten up tonight, except for three, which I gave to Marilyn, who loves Oreos & anything sweet for that matter. :)
Thank you Dave & Linda for helping with some of the groceries for this meal & Dave, for loading up the car for me once more with all the heavy things !! :)
Marilyn, I'm so grateful for all your caring help & that you are so reliable always. :)
Good night now & sleep with the Angels everyone !! :)
We fed 69 people tonight. :) The lines at both parks are getting longer again each time & it feels good to be feeding more people again. With the Thanksgiving meal on November 23rd we will cross 11,000 fed. :o
We were so busy serving that we didn't have time to take pictures this time. :o :)
Tonight was J.J.s last time serving, on a regular basis anyway. J.J. has a new job & has to work on Saturdays now. It makes me sad to lose you J.J., as I knew I could always count on you to be at the parks. :) You knew the routine so well & you always made it easy for Marilyn & me. :) Thank you for all the hours you dedicated to this & please come back anytime you get out of work early !! :) It will not be the same without you !!
Thank you Cheryl for all the Oreo cookies you donated !! They all got eaten up tonight, except for three, which I gave to Marilyn, who loves Oreos & anything sweet for that matter. :)
Thank you Dave & Linda for helping with some of the groceries for this meal & Dave, for loading up the car for me once more with all the heavy things !! :)
Marilyn, I'm so grateful for all your caring help & that you are so reliable always. :)
Good night now & sleep with the Angels everyone !! :)
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