Santa Rosa’s Thanksgiving for those in need draws up to 5,000

The smile on Santa Rosa resident Dan Pickle’s face stretched from ear to ear as he donned his new ?leather-lined winter coat before sitting down for a traditional turkey dinner Wednesday at the Redwood Gospel Mission’s annual Thanksgiving Banquet.

“It may be a used one, but I don’t care. It’s a gift from the community,” said Pickle, 58, who is disabled. “I’m going for the turkey. Considering all my family is all gone, this means a lot to me.”

The holiday feast, offered up to homeless residents and those in need drew up to 5,000 diners to the Sonoma County Fairgrounds. It is Santa Rosa-based Redwood Gospel Mission’s biggest charity event of the year, complete with a hot turkey dinner, a coat giveaway, free haircuts, flu shots and a foot-washing station.

“It’s so much more than a meal,” said Jeff Gilman, executive director of the Redwood Gospel Mission, who started the event 24 years ago. “It really brings people together for an amazing day.”

Some of those on hand Wednesday came to share the day with others, while many homeless people said it meant the difference between eating or going hungry.

“We have to be able to eat to survive,” said Carol Swan, 54, who has been homeless in Santa Rosa eight years. “This is a rare hot meal. I feel lucky and blessed.”

Swan’s friend, Adam Koppenhaver sat beside her eating turkey, salad and mashed potatoes. Plates of pumpkin pie filled their table.

“This is proof that we’re in a community where people are willing to show us respect and love, when we’re not used to feeling respect and love,” said Koppenhaver, 31, who has been homeless off and on for 13 years. “It makes me feel better about the holidays.”

Karina Espinoza, 29, brought her two children, ages 8 and 2. She said it was her first time at the feast, but she’d likely come back next year.

“Everyone is so nice,” Espinoza said. “And they bring you good food.”

The all-day event also drew 600 volunteers. While some gave free haircuts and manicures, others handed out free turkeys and bags of groceries filled with potatoes, carrots, onions and canned cranberries.

Volunteers Jolly Christian and his wife, Denise, supervised the food giveaway. Together with a small team of volunteers, Christian said he’d hand out 1,300 turkeys and 1,300 bags of groceries Wednesday.

“It’s a matter of giving. ’Tis the season,” Christian said. “I love seeing all the smiles on people’s faces when they get the food. It’s a blessing to be able to be here.”

Charles Fleming, 60, another volunteer who served the Thanksgiving meal in the dining hall, said he too wanted to give back.

“I try to donate as much of my time as possible, since I don’t have a lot of money to give,” Fleming said. “It brings a certain amount of sensitivity. … There are so many people who don’t have a lot and people tend to turn their eyes down at them. We shouldn’t.”

Tamara Miller, who has been homeless for eight years in Santa Rosa, came for the full meal, as well as a haircut and to get her feet washed. She said she has been sleeping recently on a friend’s front porch.

“You try to stay positive and believe that the good exceeds the bad,” she said. “It’s people like this, the volunteers, who help.”

Pickle, meanwhile, said the Thanksgiving dinner offered a bit of help during tight financial times. He rents a room in Santa Rosa for $700 per month, which saps all but $200 of his monthly income.

“Look at this, I love this community,” Pickle said as he glanced around the dining hall at the fairgrounds. “What a wonderful start to the holiday season.”

You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 707-526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemocrat.com. ?On Twitter @ahartreports.