SF Mayor Breed, Police, Fire Chiefs Help Prepare 3,700 Meals Before Thanksgiving
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- San Francisco Mayor London Breed joined dozens of first responders Wednesday morning to help carve Thanksgiving turkeys for some of the city's most needy residents.
As part of The Salvation Army's annual Turkey Carving event, held at The Salvation Army's Harbor Light Center, Breed, Police Chief William Scott and Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson helped carve 1,600 pounds of turkey to help feed almost 4,000 seniors and homebound residents.
Dozens of police officers, firefighters, Salvation Army volunteers and cadets with City College of San Francisco's Fire Academy helped with the effort.
The turkeys will be prepared into 3,700 holiday meals equipped with all the fixings, including yams, stuffing, greens, gravy and cranberry sauce. The meals will then be packaged and delivered on Thursday morning by hundreds of volunteers.
"Sometimes we have to keep in mind that the holidays can be depressing and this might be the only time that someone even has contact with another person when these meals are delivered, so it does mean so much," Breed said.
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"It feels good to support the community. It's a great way to kick off the holiday season," Scott said. "To be here to be able to do this, it means a lot."
Nicholson, who has been on the job for just six months after replacing former Chief Joanne Hayes-White in May, said so far, "It's been a great experience working for this mayor and the citizens of San Francisco. I have a great team around me."
She added, "The fire department is on duty 24-7 so I really appreciate all the boots-on-the-ground people. We work holiday or no holiday, we're always there so it takes a team to run this department and I am grateful for the team that I have."
The Salvation Army, established in 1865, helps about 300,000 people in the Bay Area, providing basic needs like housing, clothing, and food, as well as social services, housing support and alcohol abuse recovery programs.
Before delivering the meals at 8 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning, volunteers are expected to begin packaging and sorting the meals at the Harbor Light Center as early as 4 a.m.
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