Community partners are joining together to ensure that those without a holiday meal this Thanksgiving will receive hot, homemade dishes as well as clothing to stay warm.

Echo Louissaint, who is the founder of A Word from Echo and is one of the people in charge of the Worcester Community Fridges, took to Facebook Monday, November 15, calling for help within the community.

“If you are lucky enough to be sitting down on Thanksgiving at a table eating a hot meal with friends, family …then you are truly blessed beyond measure,” Louissaint posted on Facebook.

The post listed the needs the community has: cooking, delivery, hand outs, donations, and even just knowing where to find people in need.

“The cost of food has risen astronomically,” Louissaint said. “When you become a part of the community, you realize that there are parts of the community that are being unhelped and unnoticed.”

Now, Louissaint has teamed up with other community organizers to form a coalition of sorts that is hoping to help 200 people on Thanksgiving. The food and clothing are for people who are unhoused as well as seniors in particular, but anyone who does not have a place or family to join with for the holidays can take part as well.

“This is true community collaboration,” Louissaint said. “When we all work together, we make a really big impact. The end goal is making our community a better place and making people feel like this is a place they want to be.”

In addition to A Word from Echo, the other community partners include Charles Luster from 2Gether We Eat; Reverend Clyde Talley from Yes We Care at Belmont AME Zion Church; Daniel Ford from The Bridge; Judy Perry from Jubilee Career Center for the Performing Arts; Johanna Hampton Dance; and, Moses Dixon from the Central Mass Agency on Aging.

“I partnered up with agents of change within the community,” Luster said. “We’re giving essential products that people need in order to live within our community. For us to team up and do this effort in our community, we can still do great things with what we do have. That’s what Thanksgiving is about.”

Luster joked that the group is made up with little people with big voices trying to accomplish big goals. While the organizations may not be the largest, he wants their efforts to make a difference.

“It’s just good people doing good things for our community,” he said.

Hampton Dance said that she often cooks and delivers food during the holidays, but this event is more special than others.

“This is kind of special because it’s actually for Thanksgiving. I never really had the chance to do a Thanksgiving meal,” she said. “There’s so many people that are involved, especially for the holidays, so it’s extra special.”

Louissaint also added that the ideas around food security and mental health awareness are important to all of the community members within the group. She said that each participant wants to contribute to the feeling of togetherness and warmth that will “create a sense that we care.”

Hampton Dance will cook along with others large dishes that will be delivered to those in need. Options will include meat dishes (without pork), side dishes, and vegetarian dishes.

“This is going to be a fabulous Thanksgiving for these people,” Louissaint said. “I think the importance of this is the community collaboration is really going to make an impact. It’s going to send the message that we can do so much more together to accomplish something beautiful in this community.”

Luster added that this initiative ties into the ideas around Thanksgiving and the efforts of sharing and caring for one another.

“We’re blessed, and when you realize that you’re blessed, you have no need to complain,” Luster said. “All you can do is help people.”

Daniel Ford agreed that the work is for the people, in hopes of forming a more equitable community.

“The Bridge community supports creating equity in the hood for our neighbors and children, which in hand spills over into economic stimulation,” Ford said. “Supporting necessary projects like this for those without or lacking creates an environment of belonging and togetherness, and that is priceless.”

The food will be available for pickup the day before Thanksgiving, so that the food can be delivered Thanksgiving morning between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Louissaint said that the unique aspect of this initiative is that they are putting in the time and effort to find where the unsheltered communities or seniors in need are. The deliveries will be taken straight to them rather than those in need having to go somewhere.

“As long as people are eating and their bellies are full, I am satisfied,” Hampton Dance said.

Hampton Dance added that the past year has been centered around a lot of growth and connections within the community of Worcester. This giving back event is just one part of it.

“Here in Worcester, I think we are trying to rebuild a sense of community and a sense of caring and compassion,” Hampton Dance said. “I think with Covid, it kind of reintroduced the sense of being neighborly that we were missing. I think this is going to have that kind of impact.”

The group has set up an Amazon list as well so that people can donate hats, gloves, scarves, hand warmers, and sweatshirts. In addition, the group needs to-go containers and wrapped utensils. Louissaint said the goal is 200 of each item.

“We want to bring that joy. We want to bring that warmth,” Louissaint said. “We want to bring what they need right to them and where they are and not put the burden on them to find us.”

The link to donate items from the list is https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/20GS3ERB9HXC3?ref_=wl_share&fbclid=IwAR3wiLJqMXfk0WqlLrGmHi-2NY-fG_q6QyStv5s1xJTb1SFAOD-Sc09CJvA.

Louissaint said the group has already collected over 120 care packages, which she is calling “blessing bags.” The bags include masks, hand sanitizer, socks, scarves, gloves, hats, and sweatshirts.

The group is also accepting grocery store gift cards in support of the initiative. In addition to monetary donations, Louissaint said the group’s largest need is volunteers to deliver food.

“We really want to provide an experience and make them feel human and like they belong,” Louissaint said. “We want to bring them into the blessings that we have, and I think that’s really important.”

To learn more about the initiative, reach out to Louissaint over Facebook.