By GALEN HAWES
ADA – The annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner, a local holiday tradition for decades, is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 25.
Hosted by East Central University’s Human Services Club, the community-wide feast takes place in the Pontotoc County Convention Center at 1700 N. Broadway – adjacent to the big red barn at the county agri-plex. Doors open at 4:15 p.m. and dinner will be served from 4:30 until 8 or until the food is gone.
“This is a popular and well-attended event each year,” said ECU instructor Jeanene Taylor, who helped organize the dinner. “When the weather is agreeable, we usually have as many as 3,000 citizens come eat with us.”
Everyone is welcome to attend the event, which is offered free of charge. For many, the annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner represents the only chance to enjoy a holiday meal with the fellowship of others.
While the ECU Human Services Club stages the important event, it would not be possible without the generosity of local businesses, donors and sponsors. Any and all help is appreciated. Donations may be made to the Human Services Club in care of the ECU Foundation, Inc.
“A lot of campus organizations work at the Community Thanksgiving Dinner each year,” Taylor said. “We encourage them to wear shirts that promote their organizations and ECU so people can recognize their efforts.”
For more information about the Community Thanksgiving Dinner or to make a donation, contact Taylor at 580-559-5435; Mark Morgenthaler at 580-279-4818; Shelley Bailey at 580-559-5460; or Melissa Inglis at 580-559-5382.
-ECU-