The Thanksgiving Meal bag that went with the turkey for “Turkey on Every Table.”
*Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth*

This year's request for turkey meals for the annual Turkey on Every Table initiative grew by 330%, said Reuben Simmons to A Little Beacon Blog. "Last year, we had 90 signups. This year, we had 395 signups." There were four distribution points and organizations involved in the city-wide effort, including I Am Beacon, Fareground, Key Food, Salem Tabernacle and Knights of Columbus #446. This year, LaStar Gorton, incoming Councilmember for Ward 1, also participated in the distribution.

Kenya Gadsden holding a donated turkey before she services people in the line to receive the meals. Kenya wore her I Am Beacon sweatshirt this day, but wears several other sweatshirts:
- member of the Beacon Board of Education
- Councilwoman for Fishkill Town Board
- jointly oversees the Open Arms Christian Ministries International Food Pantry with distribution point here at Beacon Parks and Recreation Building
- supports the “Class in a Bag” Initiative, which supplies backpacks filled with school supplies for children in the Beacon City School District
- Ran for Dutchess County Clerk
*Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth*

On the Saturday before Thanksgiving, registered people lined up to receive one turkey and a bag of food to prepare at home from one of the four distribution locations: Fareground at 37 Lamplight (the old Mary Kelly's building that is now the Star of Bethlehem Baptist Church), the Beacon Parks and Recreation Building at 23 West Center Street, Salem Tabernacle at 7 Delavan Ave., and St. Andrew & St. Luke Episcopal Church at 15 South Avenue.

Meals included a 14lb turkey, the infamous Kings Hawaiian dinner rolls, Stove Top stuffing, Key Food brand Urban Meadows apple pie, Kraft Mac and Cheese, Urban Meadows’s jelly, a bag of fresh apples, a bag of rice, and Green Giant mixed greens.

Families were in line to receive, some who walked there with metal push carts and strollers, and some who drove.

Knights of Columbus #446 members gathered around Junior Dabashi’s (Key Food) truck for another loading in of Thanksgiving Meals at 23 West Center Street, the Beacon Parks and Recreation Building.
*Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth*

The total number of meals distributed from each location was 123 at Fareground, 127 Beacon Parks and Recreation, 61 at Salem Tabernacle, and at least 10 distributed directly by I Am Beacon to those who could not make the line. Reuben of I Am Beacon and Junior Dabashi of Key Food, with the assistance of Salem Tabernacle’s van of helpers which includes Ian, Frank and Pastor Bill, collect and distribute the food to each location, with the assistance of the Knights of Columbus offloading the food from the trucks.

ALBB visited the West Center Street location to talk to the group leaders to learn the origins of Turkey on Every Table - to get more from the story and see behind the flyer that asks for food donations each year.

How long has the program been going on?

Before this interview, the group leaders conferred among themselves to track back the origins, as this initiative is a collaborative effort with the groups.

This interview is with: Reuben Simmons of I Am Beacon; Ian Zrodlowski of Salam Tabernacle Church; Junior Dabashi of Key Food; and Bernard Gadson, married to Kenya Gadsden who was leading the distribution with families to get the turkey meals. A member of Knights of Columbus served as cameraman for this video.

I Am Beacon started Turkey on Every Table in 2014 and continued it for 4 years. Reuben, a co-founder of I Am Beacon told ALBB: "We got away from it [Turkey on Every Table] in 2018/19 as we saw there were multiple organizations doing distributions. The impact we felt was already being met. As an organization, I Am Beacon stepped back from it...And then COVID hit, and there was more time for people to regroup. One of I Am Beacon's missions is to do things in a collaborative effort."

Ian Zrodlowski of Salam Tabernacle Church carrying bags of food from their van.
*PHoto Credit: Katie Hellmuth*

Reuben went onto let the other explain. Ian told of how Salem Tabernacle Church has been in Beacon since the 1950s. "Every Thanksgiving, the women of the church would get together and put baskets together for people in need. Usually by word of mouth." He said that a dozen families would usually be reached. "It was not a formal thing, just something that we've always been doing."

More Salam Tabernacle Church members carrying Community-donated food from their van.
*Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth*

Reuben explained that Junior Dabashi was a key part of why the initiative started back up again. Junior had met with Salem Tabernacle, Reuben said, and who learned that Salem Tabernacle wanted to get more involved with the Beacon community. Junior asked Reuben to bring back the Turkey on Every Table program. "The only way I said I'd do it is if it was on a collaborative effort." They met with Salem Tabernacle, as well as Kenya and Bernard Gadsden with Open Arms Ministry, who run the weekly food pantry out of the Beacon Parks and Recreation building every Saturday.

In 2021, the Turkey on Every Table program revived, and has been happening ever since.

Fried Turkeys and Home-Bound Senior Citizens

During the distribution, ALBB heard Bernard talking about his schedule this week for frying turkeys. We asked him to tell us more about the process, and who he was cooking for. Bernard is passionate about caring for the seniors to provide for them an experience that can easily pass them over.

Bernard works at a Senior Apartment Complex. "A lot of seniors don't get a chance to go out. So they stay home and probably make a cornish hen. On Thanksgiving. I just felt that's ludicrous," Bernard told ALBB. "So I said, I want to bring my equipment. I want to fry turkeys for them." His boss gave him the green light to fry the turkeys, and he's been doing it for the last 5 years. "I did 3 turkeys yesterday. One for my grandson's school in Poughkeepsie, and 2 for my job. There was nothing left. They love it every year. And I look forward to it." This year, he's doing two more turkeys on Tuesday for another senior apartment complex in Newburgh.

Bernard then describes how he likes to fry the turkey. He prefers a turkey that is 15lb or under. "Forty-five minutes to an hour, and they are done," Bernard stated.

Kids Coat Distribution From Knights Of Columbus

Coats for kids came through the Knights of Columbus, who have been doing the coat distribution for 40 years in Beacon from their building before they sold it, member Kevin Allison told ALBB. One year, a group from Peekskill was doing a toy drive distribution where Sue Serino arrived to help. "One of Sue’s office people was at the door. One kid came through the door with no coat. I said 'where is your coat?' He said he didn't have one. I made sure he had a brand new coat.”