October is ending and November is soon beginning, and around the Central Kitsap Food Bank that means folks are talking turkey.
Just ask Executive Director Chris Benson.
“This is my first year doing the Thanksgiving baskets,” said Benson, who became director about six months ago. “Everyone tells me it all works out, but I’m a planner and so I’ve got to put down plans.”
And those plans happen to include that he needs “the fixin’s for Thanksgiving,” and a whole lot of volunteers, he said.
“We’ve got great volunteers year-round,” Benson said. “But when it comes time to put together the Thanksgiving food baskets, we need more.”
The food bank annually distributes from 225 to 250 food baskets for Thanksgiving, and then again for Christmas. Most go to their regular food bank clients, and some go to people who just need help with their holiday dinners with extended family.
While the staff at the food bank is busy from now until Thanksgiving getting all the necessary items rounded up for the baskets, they’re also putting out the call for about another 40 volunteers who can man the assembly line on Nov. 21 and 22, making sure each basket has a bit of everything to pull off a great Turkey Day dinner.
This year, because the food bank is in it’s new, larger location, Benson plans to use the lower-level warehouse space and put up tables where 250 grocery bags will sit. Volunteers will be assigned to food items, such as canned green beans, cranberries, gravy, sweet potatoes, Jell-O, stuffing and chicken broth. Volunteers will push carts of their items around the tables and drop one or more in each bag.
“We are the conveyor belt,” said staff member Ryoko Mosley.
Bags are assembled for one to two people, families of three to four, five to six, and more than seven people.
“It’s drop a Jell-O, bag after bag after bag,” Benson added.
Once the bags are assembled, staff will use a forklift to take them to the main level.
“And then, food baskets (bags) will be distributed to clients beginning on the Saturday before Thanksgiving,” Benson said.
Most clients will pick up their baskets (which will also include a turkey, ham or chicken) from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Nov. 22. The food bank has plans for clients to be pre-registered for their basket and they’ll be able to drive through the parking lot, hand a staff member or volunteer their ticket that tells the size of their family and then a volunteer will deliver their food basket to their car.
“It’s drive-thru service,” he said. “They won’t even have to get out of the car.”
Benson said clients can even call to pre-register for food baskets if they are a regular client of the food bank. Anyone needing a Thanksgiving basket who is not a client at the food bank, should come to the food bank prior to Nov. 20 and fill out an in-take form with staff, he said.
To be ready for the food basket distribution, CK Food Bank needs 20 volunteers who can assemble baskets from 1:30 to 5 p.m. on Nov. 21, and another 20 who can work 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Nov. 22.
“We’re also going to need volunteers who can work doing our Christmas baskets assembly in December,” Benson said. Those dates are Dec. 19 and Dec. 20.
As for what’s going in the Thanksgiving baskets, with the food bank’s monitory donations, turkeys, hams and whole chickens have been ordered and will arrive the week of the Thanksgiving food distribution. The food bank has enough green beans and cranberries, but needs donations of boxed stuffing, yams and sweet potatoes, chicken broth, gravy, Jell-O and pudding.
“We have some food drives lined up,” Benson said. “We just received 1,071 pounds of food donated at the Kitsap Haunted Fairgrounds. But we can always use more.”
To sign up to volunteer, or host a food drive, call the food bank at 360-692-9818, or email info@ckfoodbank.org. The website is www.ckfoodbank.org. The food bank is located at 3537 N.W. Anderson Hill Road in Silverdale.
