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Baskets for happier holiday
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Laura MacGregor of Girard receives a turkey from the Emmanuel Community Care Center in Girard. The center handed out nearly 400 holiday baskets Tuesday to families in Girard, McDonald and Mineral Ridge. Along with turkeys, the center offered bags full of potatoes, bread, pumpkin pie, green beans, cranberries and milk.
By Danny Restivo
girard
A local charity made Thanksgiving a little easier for nearly 400 families Tuesday.
The Emmanuel Community Care Center on State Street offered McDonald, Girard and Mineral Ridge residents holiday trimmings to celebrate Thanksgiving. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., volunteers handed out tote bags filled with potatoes, pumpkin pie, bread, evaporated milk, green beans and more. The organization also offered $10 cards that could be used to purchase a turkey at a nearby grocery store.
Sister Jean Orsutok, center director, said 13 organizations along with students from St. Rose school contributed to help the less fortunate.
“The whole community came together for this,” said Orsutok. “Girard is a very caring and generous community, especially during the holidays.”
The generosity was felt by those receiving the holiday treats.
Gina Porterfield of Girard was one of approximately 400 people who received a holiday basket. She said her husband recently had lost his job, and the center has proven to be a lifeline.
“If we didn’t have these types of places, I don’t know what we would do,” she said.
Eleanor Smith and Christine Peterson, both of Girard, are having Thanksgiving dinner with each other Thursday. They both received some much-needed food from the center. Smith is unemployed due to a disability and receives food stamps. She said it’s hard to get by with the little assistance she receives, but the Emmanuel Care Center helps her and others.
“My food stamps don’t cover everything,” she said. “There are a lot of people I know that come here.”
With the current economic conditions, Orsutok said the center has seen an increase in the number of families looking for help. When she started serving as the center’s director 10 years ago, Orsutok said, they prepared only 139 baskets, but need has forced the center to prepare for more each year.
“I can’t ever turn anyone away,” she said.