Rotary Club Project Provides Happy Thanksgivings

The annually contributes thousands of dollars and many hours of service to humanitarian programs in the surrounding area.

Over the weekend, the group carried out one of its most important projects - providing area families in need with a proper Thanksgiving meal.

When asked why this program was so important to Rotary, project coordinator Rob Bassett gave a simple yet powerful reply, "because people are hungry."

The project, which was done in conjunction with the Rotary Amigos de Milwaukee club, aims to provide and deliver Thanksgiving meals to 50 families every year. This year, the number of families went up to 62 - about 290 people, Bassett said.

On Saturday morning, nearly 30 volunteers crowded the Concourse Room of the Clarion Hotel, 5311 S. Howell Ave., to unpack and divvy up items - apples, turkeys, rolls, oranges, stuffing, celery, carrots, canned vegetables, potatoes and more -  for the personalized Thanksgiving packages. Within an hour, the meal boxes were ready for delivery.

Over the next hour, 15 delivery drivers made their way to the doorsteps of their intended recipients.

Bassett, a Rotary member of 25 years, isn't sure how long the club has been doing this project, only that it's been since before he joined.

The names of the receiving families were given to Rotary by several local social service agencies - three Interfaith groups, the South Milwaukee Health Department, The in Oak Creek, Project Concern and the Sixteenth Street Clinic.