A local nonprofit is coordinating a massive Thanksgiving operation of 1,700 plates.
About 400 diners will enjoy meals in person at Malden High School, while the rest can expect Thanksgiving Day deliveries. It's a massive undertaking that requires an army of food preparers donating their time -- and their kitchens.
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Days before Thanksgiving, dozens of volunteers filed into Bread of Life in Malden to collect donated turkeys. They will be cooked, lovingly in people's homes, and then returned.
“We do it every year. We’ve been lifelong Malden residents and this is our contribution to the community," said Maureen Cooper, who was picking up turkeys.
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“They’re just struggling or they’re having a hard time financially. They want to be with somebody on Thanksgiving and may not be able to afford it at home. They know they can come with us," Patty Kelly of Bread of Life explained.
It's the community-inspired magic behind a sit-down Thanksgiving meal for 400 guests and 1,300 delivered plates, feeding people who don't always know where the next meal is coming from.
"We utilize a spreadsheet, we get the routes down and then that morning, on Thanksgiving, our drivers come around 10:30 and that’s when the meals are about ready to go," said Maria Luise, special assistant to the mayor.
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Bread of Life serves a million meals per year. They could handle the whole Thanksgiving operation themselves. But if they did it all, the community wouldn't get a chance to serve with their own hands.
"That is what the Bread of Life is all about, is gathering community together, feeding our neighbors and doing it together as a community," Kelly said.
Monetary donors are a big part of the operation as well. This year, that money went further than usual - most of the turkeys were purchased on Amazon, at 49 cents per pound.
