Freezer at Saint Joseph’s is vacant, 600 turkeys needed to feed
Thanksgiving crowd
Gilroy – Less than two weeks before Thanksgiving, the freezer at Saint Joseph’s Family Center is all but empty. Twenty turkeys seems like a lot, says Vicky Martin, food distribution coordinator – unless you need 600. On Turkey Day, 300 people will crowd the Saint Mary’s Catholic Church gymnasium, and hundreds more will lug home boxes packed with stuffing, canned yams and all the fixings. No – 20 turkeys just won’t do.
“We’ll have the dinner, regardless of what happens,” said Joseph Peralta, a volunteer cook. This is his 27th year cooking Thanksgiving meals for seniors, low-income people and the homeless, and he’s not fazed by the shortage. But if Saint Joseph’s has to carve funds from its own budget – $4,000 to feed 500 families, Martin estimates – others will go without rental assistance, transportation assistance, formula and diapers.
“We’d hate to do that,” Martin said with a grimace. “By now, we’re usually cramming cans all over the shelves. Now, it would be nice to see them overflowing.”
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Saint Joseph’s has been sweating for turkeys. Last year, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita slammed donors’ pocketbooks; in 2004, the charity was 970 turkeys short, with two weeks to spare. Each year, volunteers peer into empty freezers and cupboards, and try not to panic.
“About the time we think we’re not getting anything – boom, they start coming in,” said Peralta.
Thankfully, when it gets down to the wire, Gilroy donors deliver. One man, an anonymous donor, rolled up to Saint Joseph’s last year in a truck, toting hundreds of turkeys. He didn’t even want a receipt, Martin said.
“People just need a reminder,” said Martin. “When they get it, they’re generous.”
But the last-minute gifts are symptomatic of the haphazard way most Californians give, said Tim Stone, executive director of NewTithing Group in San Francisco.
“It’s natural for many of us to give in a spontaneous and piecemeal fashion throughout the year, and this accelerates toward the end of the year,” Stone explained. Toy drives, bell ringers and other winter pleas get givers to reach in their pockets, but they may not be digging deep enough. When people give piecemeal, said Stone, they often underestimate what they can give – particularly if they’re wealthy.
NewTithing research has found that, excepting the “super-rich,” wealthy people give a lower percentage of their income than middle-class or low-income donors. If they gave the same portion of their income as poorer givers, individual donations would boom 23 percent, or $41.6 billion. Moreover, if Californians gave as much as donors in Utah, billions more would land in charities’ coffers.
“We encourage givers to change their giving style from reactive obligation to proactive passion,” Stone said. That could put more turkeys in Saint Joseph’s freezer – and sooner.
Though a good deed is better done late than never, it can jam the gears of small non-profits, said Eleanor Villarreal, chief development officer at Rebekah’s Children’s Services. Every year, her agency treats kids to a Thanksgiving lunch, “a traditional meal so they don’t feel so bad about not being with a family.” She’s grateful for any donations, but the eleventh-hour rush is both a relief, and a strain.
“We make a plea, we haven’t gotten much, and then, all of a sudden, you get everything,” she said. “Don’t get me wrong – we’re very appreciative! But it makes it really hard for us to get it to the families in time.”
The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that the nation’s 400 largest charities reap 31 percent of their yearly budgets between October and December. Villarreal says their holiday donations keep them running well into the new year. It’s an important time to give: with winter weather, need rises, said Martin, as heating bills bump higher and summer jobs slip away.
Still, Villarreal sometimes wishes the giving spirit weren’t seasonal.
“The need is always there,” she said. “We wish it was Christmas all year long.”
Where to give
– Saint Joseph’s needs 500 to 600 turkeys, as well as cranberry sauce, pumpkin pies, canned yams, stuffing etc. Sleeping bags, socks and sweatshirts also needed for the homeless. Donations can be delivered to 7950 Church St., 9am to 4pm, Mon. – Fri.
– Rebekah’s needs Thanksgiving meals for 30 kids. Donations can be dropped off at 290 100F Ave. Donors also can adopt a family, 846-2100.
– The Salvation Army is stocked with food, but gifts for kids are running low, especially for kids ages 9 to 11. Adopt a family, 848-5373. Bring donations to 200 W Fifth St., 9am to 4pm, Mon. – Fri. Suggested gifts: skates, skateboards, scooters, jewelry-making kits, arts and crafts, bicycles, helmets, walkmans, gift certificates.
