On the eve of Thanksgiving, the Baltimore Convention Center became a nexus of generosity and community as over 2,000 individuals gathered to partake in a traditional turkey dinner courtesy of Goodwill Industries of the Chesapeake. The 67th annual event not only nourished bodies but, according to WMAR-2 News, the feast came with a side of compassion and camaraderie for folks like Latisha Crawford, a veteran and a relative newcomer to the city. "Some people don’t have it,” Crawford says. “Like myself. I’m a veteran. I’m new to Baltimore but not fairly new. So, it’s a nice gathering to give people an opportunity to eat"
The event was not solely about the meal, as it included a resource fair offering job training and placement programs, health services, and much more. Santa, face painting, and magician's tricks added a festive touch for the families and children in attendance. Among the volunteers were local law enforcement and the city's top police officer, Commissioner Richard Worley, Mayor Brandon Scott, and his son, Ceron, who contributed to the cause.
The initiative reached beyond the immediate need for a warm meal. Lisa Rusyniak, President/CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Chesapeake, reinforced this notion in her statement per CBS News Baltimore, "I'm grateful to be in the position that I am to help people." She went on to describe the available resources that aimed to lay a foundation for sustainable improvement in the lives of the attendees, stating, "So that when they come to Goodwill, which we hope they will, we can get them connected to our job training programs, we place them into jobs."
Volunteers, many of them students, left feeling uplifted by the impact of their service. As student volunteer Ameria Boxdale said in an interview with CBS News Baltimore, "Knowing that I did help people makes me feel a hundred percent awesome." Darryl Green, an event attendee, shared similar sentiments, emphasizing the deeper effect of such gatherings, "A lot of us don't have families, and when you get to socialize with people who are in the same predicament that you are in, it changes your whole outlook about how you feel about yourself and where you are in your life."
