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Community Impact

18th Annual Hands for Hope Thanksgiving Event Serves 914 Families

The 18th Annual Hands for Hope Thanksgiving Event welcomed the holiday season on Saturday, November 22. With the help and support from sponsors, donors and more than 200 community volunteers, El Buen provided 914 working-poor families with a turkey and the necessary ingredients to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving meal.

"We are extremely grateful for the generous financial and volunteer support from State Farm Insurance," said Melinda Rodriguez, development director of El Buen. "They are largely responsible for providing the turkeys. We were also very blessed to receive 568 pre-packaged Thanksgiving boxes from churches such as St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, Dell employees and Loving Hands, Loving Hearts."

El Buen also received $9,640 in monetary donations from the community in support of Hands for Hope, in addition to the support from more than 200 volunteers who prepared food bags and handed out turkeys to families that braved the chilly temperatures to receive their Thanksgiving gifts. The following volunteers groups helped make the 18th Annual Hands for Hope Thanksgiving Event possible: State Farm Insurance Hispanic Employee Resource Organization (HERO), Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) (photo above), Austin Police Department, Austin Fire Department, National Charity League-Austin Chapter and Girls Scouts of Central Texas.