Catholic Charities of Northern Nevada is once again partnering with the Nugget Casino Resort to serve a free Thanksgiving meal on Thursday, Nov. 27.
This is the 38th year that the Nugget will provide Thanksgiving meals for the community. The plates will be decked with stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce and of course turkey.
For a large part of the year the food that Northern Nevada Catholic Charities provides is made by their volunteers, but for Thanksgiving the food is made by the chefs at the Nugget. The organization anticipates about 1,200 plates of food to be served.
The need this year will likely be greater than last year, said Marie Baxter, CEO of Northern Nevada Catholic Charities, but she’s not worried about anyone being left without a hot, Thanksgiving meal.
“The great news about the Nugget is, if it looks like we're having a surge of individuals, we just give them a call and they make sure that everybody gets that amazing, amazing meal that they donate to us,” she said.
Northern Nevada Catholic Charities also has a program that provides frozen turkeys to individuals, but for some the Thanksgiving meal is the better or only option.
“I was talking to the mom, and I said, you know, next year, if you want, you could get a turkey in advance so that you could prepare the meal in your home. And she's like, I can't afford to run my oven. I can't afford the gas in the oven for six to eight hours to roast a turkey,” Baxter said.
Most of Northern Nevada Catholic Charities’ regular patrons are unsheltered individuals, Baxter said, but during the holiday meals they see a lot more families and seniors who might need additional support, or are simply seeking connection during the holidays.
Thanksgiving meals will be served this Thanksgiving, Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the St. Vincent’s dining room,325 Valley Rd #3344, Reno.
