Over 100 turkeys given out at community-led Thanksgiving festival

Published 1:30 am Monday, November 24, 2025

Operation Kitsap Cares, a community-led Thanksgiving festival created in response to the recent federal government shutdown, drew a large turnout Nov. 22 as volunteers distributed more than 100 holiday meal baskets and served hot food, drinks and kids’ activities at Port Orchard’s RoqN Pilates Studio.

The free event was organized by Port Orchard resident Montana Granillo, who said the idea began while she and her fiancé were out to brunch, overwhelmed by a steady stream of social media posts about the shutdown.

“We were seeing all of the daily updates about what was going on, and it was all just feeling very overwhelming,” Granillo said. She noticed multiple local businesses quietly stepping up with food drives and prepaid meal boards. “I just felt like we should do something.”

Granillo, who owns a payment processing business, said she saw an opportunity to connect her clients with a way to support the community. After reaching out to RoqN Pilates Studio owner Natasha Roque, the pair began planning what ultimately became a festival-style event rather than a traditional food bank line.

The goal, Granillo said, was to provide relief for families across Kitsap County — especially military households and civilian federal employees — who were affected by the shutdown.

“Kitsap County is actually the largest federal worker population in Washington,” she said. “These people didn’t have money, and they couldn’t afford food.”

She said the team wanted the gathering to feel welcoming and stigma-free, especially for families unused to seeking food assistance.

“We tried to make this more of a festival and less of a food bank,” Granillo said.

The demand was immediate. In the first 15 minutes, volunteers handed out 40 turkeys and grocery bags. All supplies were gone by 2 p.m.

In total, Operation Kitsap Cares distributed 105 turkeys and full grocery bags.

150 free hot meals were served from the McCloud’s Burger Wagon, and families picked up 100 Lone Star donuts. Kitsap Bartending Services also served hot cocoa and hot apple cider throughout the afternoon.

Krys Kreations provided free balloon twists and glitter tattoos, while RoqN Pilates members volunteered to run the grocery tables, kids activities, crafts and carnival games built for the event.

Granillo said she wasn’t personally affected by the shutdown, but her fiancé is a 100% disabled veteran and her daughter is a military child.

“It affected just about anybody I talked to,” she said. “It was a web that consumed Kitsap.”