Highland Lakes churches, businesses prepare free Thanksgiving meals

CONNIE SWINNEY • PICAYUNE STAFF

MARBLE FALLS — A number of churches and businesses have the right recipe for celebrating Thanksgiving.

Volunteers will offer free food and fellowship Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28, for hundreds of residents in the Burnet, Cottonwood Shores, Granite Shoals, Llano and Marble Falls areas.

“What a better way to connect with people than around food. People have fallen on hard times and Marble Falls isn’t exempt,” said Cal Reed, co-organizer of Marble Falls Church of Christ’s Thanksgiving dinner on Nov. 28 at the church.

“We’re designed to be in relationship with one another and connect with one another. If we avoid other people, especially in meaningful holidays when everybody else is celebrating and getting together, there’s a sense of loss that we experience,” he said. “What we want to see is people say, ‘I hung out with a really good group of people I wouldn’t have been able to hang out with on Thanksgiving, and the food was pretty good, too.'”

Dozens of volunteers will prepare hundreds of meals, including traditional dishes and homemade desserts.

The Church of Christ Thanksgiving dinner is 1-3 p.m. at the church, 711 Broadway Ave. Call (219) 608-4215 to volunteer or find out more.

For the first time, On The Rocks Restaurant in Cottonwood Shores and Custom Home Theater Store in Marble Falls are providing free meals from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the restaurant, 4401 Cottonwood Drive.

“It’s not cheap to make a Thanksgiving meal. Last year, I spent $200 on a meal just for my family,” said Stefanie Suggs, co-owner of Custom Home Theater Store. “There are a lot of people out there who have no family. It’s just something we wanted to do for the community.

“We wanted to make sure nobody feels left out,” she added. “It’s being able to help somebody else who might not have a hot meal.”

In true business form, coordinators calculated the potential cost to launch the effort, which includes employees and their families volunteering their time to help prepare and serve meals.

“For every $100, we can feed 15 people. We’ve had a lot of support,” Suggs said. “It makes you feel so much better doing this because there’s so much positive community response.”

Call (512) 508-0169 for more information. Donations may be made to the restaurant’s effort at American Bank of Texas under the Thanksgiving 2013 account.

connie@thepicayune.com

THANKSGIVING MEALS

Burnet: Burnet Community Kitchen’s Thanksgiving Day meal is 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Nov. 28 at the Burnet Community Center, 401 E. Jackson St. Call (512) 755-4341.

Cottonwood Shores: On The Rocks is holding a Thanksgiving Day meal 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Nov. 28 at the restaurant, 4401 Cottonwood Drive. Call (512) 508-0169 to donate or for more information.

Granite Shoals: Joseph’s Food Pantry’s pre-Thanksgiving meal is 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Nov. 23 at Highland Lakes Elementary School, 8200 RR 1431 West. There will be 2,000 meals served and a free grocery sack meal giveaway. Go to www.josephsfoodpantry.com to sign up to volunteer.

Kingsland: The annual Kingsland Community Thanksgiving Dinner is 5 p.m. Nov. 24 at First Baptist Church, 3435 RR 1431 West. The meal is free. Attendees can register to win a turkey. Take-out boxes will not be available. Go to www.firstkingsland.com or call the church office at (325) 388-4507.

Llano: A Thanksgiving meal is 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Nov. 28 at the Family Life Center, 404 Main St. Dine in or take out. A delivery meal will be provided for 100 shut-in and disabled residents. Call (325) 247-4009 to volunteer, donate or add to the delivery list.

Marble Falls:

• A free Thanksgiving meal will be served 1-3 p.m. Nov. 28 at Marble Falls Church of Christ, 711 Broadway. A private prayer room and fellowship will be offered. Football will be shown on a big-screen TV. Children of all ages are welcome. Call (830) 693-8578.

• A libre cena de Acción de Gracias será servido 1-3 p.m. 28 Noviembre en Marble Falls Iglesia de Cristo, 711 Broadway. Una sala de oración y de fraternidad. El fútbol se muestra en una gran pantalla de televisión. Los niños de todas las edades son bienvenidos. Llame al (830) 693-8578.