What a fantastic day of giving at our 2nd Annual Cops & Gobblers event yesterday! Last year, Columbus Division of Police officers from South Linden came to us with the idea to provide Thanksgiving turkeys and fixings for every resident of Rosewind Apartments. This year, we did that AND gave out meals to families on the West Side--200 dinners in all.
We were joined by incredibly sweet members of the Ohio State Football team, who helped pack and distribute the turkey dinners to residents alongside the officers and volunteers, who included our partners at Columbus Recreation and Parks Department and our sponsors, KEMBA Financial Credit Union and Byers Auto Group.
We had so much fun passing out the dinners, both in Linden and on the Hilltop. In Linden, when one gentleman, who hadn't been the one to receive the turkey at the door, found out about the gift, he came out and yelled down the street, "Hey, police! Hey, police! Thank you for the turkey! That was really nice of you! Thank you!"
In the Hilltop, in addition to the West Side officers delivering to families they knew who are in need, we partnered with the Community Center staff to identify people who needed a little extra help this year. The officers then handed them out if they were able to come during the scheduled time, or delivered them if they were not.
Thanks to everyone who made this possible--the Columbus Police officers who came up with this idea to serve their residents (and what an amazing idea it is!), all the officers and volunteers who made this happen, our sponsors Kemba, Byers, and Walmart Britton Parkway, the OSU Football Players, and our lovely partners at Columbus Recreations & Parks. We appreciate all of you so much!
