AAA to the Rescue!

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and almost 1,000 guests are coming to dinner at Loaves and Fishes of Contra Costa County. The kitchen on Garcia Avenue in Pittsburg shifted into high gear beginning November 2 to simultaneously prepare the Thanksgiving dinner and the 500 or so regular meals served every day around the county. And what better place to get started than with the turkey? Or, in this case, 60 large turkeys, donated by AAA, now head-quartered in Contra Costa County.  

“AAA was really a lifesaver,” said Bart Charlow, interim executive director for Loaves and Fishes. “These are the only turkeys that came in time for Thanksgiving.”

The turkeys joined the potatoes, onions, and other Thanksgiving staples that were peeled, chopped, and boiled on a recent morning at the Pittsburg kitchen. Chopping the onions while braving their tear-inducing fumes were Jeff Price and his 14-year-old daughter Raeleigh, who volunteered for the day as part of their community-based faith commitment.

“I like helping people,” Raeleigh said. “We know there are a lot of hungry people and we want to help. I like knowing that you’re doing something good.”

And of course the kitchen regulars were there right along with the extra volunteers for the Thanksgiving feast preparations. Isidra Felix said she’s been cooking at the Loaves and Fishes kitchen for seven years, mostly making salads and cooking vegetables though she was cutting up a small mountain of chicken breast meat on turkey delivery day.

”I enjoy my work,” she said, as she efficiently chopped away. “The people work as a team. I like that.”

Chef James Porter said he’s been at the kitchen for five years, though he worked at a restaurant for fifteen years before that. “I was homeless myself at one time,” he said thoughtfully. “… and I still see people stuck out there.”