Eva Saldana was first in line for this year’s High Desert Thanksgiving Banquet, comfortably in her folding chair and enduring the chilly 45° morning weather.
Saldana is a frequent Thanksgiving food drive attendee and knows how to work the turkey system. She got to the Victorville Fairgrounds two hours early for the best picks of pumpkin pie, a premium choice of turkey breast and French rolls that were still warm.
Like Saldana, many in line were uncertain whether a free Thanksgiving meal was planned this year due to the unexpected closing of the Victor Valley Rescue Mission and all its outreach programs this year.
“Make sure you write how thankful I am to High Desert Second Chance for stepping up and doing something like this,” Saldana said before she and the hungry Thanksgiving stampede were let in 20 minutes early while the food was still hot.
Coordinator of the banquet and former Hesperia Mayor Rebekah Swanson said 1,687 residents signed up ahead of the Nov. 19 event, a slightly larger number than what was expected.
Bill Edwards, Swanson’s “right-hand coordination man,” said the government shutdown absolutely impacted the large turnout for this year’s banquet. He says the local food banks have seen an increase in demand during the recent shutdown.
“Food insecurity is huge here,” Edwards told the Daily Press. “It has always been a struggle in this community, especially because of the ruralness. A lot of those people impacted by the shutdown will likely be here today, save maybe, for those who lack the transportation this year.”
Also early in line was Victorville resident Philip Boston. He had never attended a Second Chance food drive before and caught wind of the event from the folks at St. Joan of Arc Church the day before, when he was there for a holiday foot wash and clothing drive event.
Boston says he was directly impacted by the shutdown. He and some other Victorville friends, including a family with eight children, stopped receiving food assistance at the beginning of the month.
His SNAP benefits were only reinstated recently after a visit to the Cal Fresh office and a selfless act to deflect this month’s benefits to a local family with children who may need the assistance more this holiday season.
Boston said those like him who were recently affected by the shutdown couldn’t have been more eager to participate in the community Thanksgiving.
It takes a village
Together with a team of talented outreach coordinators and Second Chance President Christina Keneti Kennedy, Swanson pulled off the successful banquet with less than two months to prepare.
She says once the engine was started, everyone wanted to come on board. She received phone calls until the day before the event from volunteers wanting to donate turkeys.
Volunteers were equally as frustrated that there was nowhere to serve this year. Individuals and churches that typically donated either time or resources to the Victor Valley Rescue Mission were left without a cause until Swanson stepped in.
“It hurt my heart so much when the Rescue Mission closed down,” Swanson said, choking back tears. “This event is not only for those being served today, it’s for those who long to serve. We had to shut down our volunteers list two weeks ago because we had so many good people who wanted to volunteer their time for this cause.”
Residents and businesses from the Victor Valley area and beyond are in the giving spirit early this holiday season.
Employees from Texas Roadhouse in Victorville cooked fresh mashed potatoes and warm bread rolls since 5 a.m. the day of the banquet, and Raising Cane’s donated lemonade and iced tea.
Incarcerated individuals from the High Desert Detention Facility in Adelanto cooked the Thanksgiving meal the day before. Students from Cottonwood School wrote handmade thank-you and Happy Thanksgiving cards for those inmates.
Victor Valley Union High School warmed the food the morning of the banquet in their school kitchen. Volunteers from High Desert Church, local schools, Azusa Pacific University and more volunteered to serve the plates directly to resident gobblers.
The San Bernardino County Probation Department donated free clothes and shower services. Miss AJ and her Bridges Beauty College administered free haircuts.
The local nonprofit Symba Center transported the inpatients from the Victorville Wellness Center to the feast.
A local horn band, Tuba Force, set the mood with American Classics like John Denver’s “Take Me Home Country Roads.”
The whole High Desert village pulled its strings together to make the Thanksgiving Banquet happen on a $0 budget. Thanks to the help of all hands on deck, hundreds were able to feast this holiday season.
McKenna is a reporter for the Daily Press. She can be reached at mmobley@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Victorville Thanksgiving banquet feeds hundreds amid shutdown aftermath
Reporting by McKenna Mobley, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
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