By Olivia Clark, Voice & Viewpoint Staff Writer
On Monday, November 24 the Encanto Southern Baptist Church held their annual Thanksgiving turkey giveaway in partnership with the North County San Diego Chapter of Jack and Jill Foundation of America, Inc. The giveaway promised turkeys, sides, and gift cards; That is, while supplies lasted.
What was expected to be a busy but steady Thanksgiving giveaway quickly turned into a Monday morning scramble, as long lines formed outside the church gates and the event ran out of its 170 turkeys before the official 11 a.m. start time. Organizers had anticipated anywhere from 150 to 300 families, but by 10:30 a.m., the line stretched down the block. Volunteers decided to open early to keep things moving. The church made sure to set aside bags and boxes of food, including turkeys and sides, to be given to other sponsored churches.
With the turkeys gone, volunteers including Pastor Robert Pope, walked the lines of cars and people, letting families know they could either wait for the promised set of 100 $50 gift cards to arrive from the San Diego Food Bank around 12:30 p.m., or leave their names and numbers to be notified. Pastor Pope moved quickly, ensuring that every community member was aware of the circumstances and that they would be taken care of. “You know, that’s who we are. It’s not just something we do. We’ve served this community close to 40 years,” he said. “The community knows us, because we’re always out in the community providing various services.”
Pastor Pope and the Encanto Southern Baptist Church usually conduct the annual turkey giveaway on their own, so on Saturday, November 22, the church had a smaller turkey distribution in which they gave out over 30 turkeys. But with this Monday morning collaborative event, Pastor Pope noted that they would have over 200 turkeys to give out, “but we didn’t expect this type of turn out,” Pastor Pope confessed with a laugh.
Even with a one-per-family rule, volunteers saw people attempting to circle back through the line for more food. “It’s the first year that we did not do vouchers. We decided to go with honesty, and we’re finding couples come in and splitting up…we’re still gonna do what we can,” said Dr. Suzanne Afflalo, one of the organizers of the event. “Because vouchers, at least if they come in a car with three vouchers, then we know there’s three families,” she continued.
By late morning, reports of people coming back for seconds were piling up. Dr. Afflalo pointed to a woman standing towards the front of the line just outside the church gates, explaining she had already gone through once in a car with her family. “Some are desperate, some are just dishonest, and some are not going to have their needs met if people are double, triple dipping,” she said. “And sometimes people know that there are multiple places, so they go to multiple places and get the turkeys, but we have no way of knowing.”
Feeding San Diego, one of the event’s usual sponsor organizations, had not donated any food to the giveaway this year. The San Diego Food Bank had only donated carrots and melons, “which have nothing to do with Thanksgiving,” said Dr. Afflalo. Reportedly, both food donation organizations had been left with very little to give out this Thanksgiving as a result of increased community need due to federal cuts to CalFresh and other food assistance programs. ”We’ve got till two o’clock to make it work,” Dr. Afflalo said with a spark of optimism.
Right when the morning setbacks were beginning to take their toll, a shift towards hope emerged. At around 11:30 a.m., word came that the Jack and Jill fathers and husbands group chat had come together to pitch in $2,000 to buy more turkeys and sides to be given out to the community. By noon, that number had climbed to just above $3,000. The select group of fathers and husbands were on the move, shopping, and promised more turkeys would be provided within the hour. There was a noticeable shift in the body language of the volunteers of all ages, as they knew they would soon be able to serve the community once again.
Soon, a Uhaul truck filled with 150 turkeys and 40 to 50 10-pound-bags of potatoes pulled into the church parking lot, met with roaring applause from community members and volunteers alike. Everyone sprung into action, volunteers organizing themselves into an assembly line and packing bags with turkeys, potatoes, and any sides available. As the work began and community members started rolling back though the line of tents, more and more people seemed to pop into line, seeking out their helping of a Thanksgiving feast. As the new set of turkeys began to run out once more, the $50 gift cards were then given out in their place.
Despite the shortages, organizers made sure no one would leave empty-handed. Even families arriving later in the afternoon, long after the turkeys were gone, were promised gift cards to help piece together a Thanksgiving meal.
Through the unexpected, Pastor Pope hung on to his mission and his infectious hope for the day. “So we do anything that we can…we can’t solve world hunger, but we know we can make a difference with what we can do,” he said with a warm smile.
