Home » Past Events » Hands for Hope Thanksgiving Event
About Hands for Hope:
Hands for Hope is an annual community-wide event, presented by El Buen Samaritano Episcopal Mission, that raises awareness of a serious issue happening in our own city: hunger. The event gathers donations of the traditional foods served during Thanksgiving and distributes them to Austin families in need for Thanksgiving celebrations in their own homes. Now in its 21st year, Hands for Hope takes place on the Saturday prior to Thanksgiving Day and is a culminating event for National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. See event details.
H4H Event Recap
Tuesday, November 22, 2011We did it. Thank you!
We are incredibly grateful for the outpouring support we have received from our friends and partners in the last several weeks. Thanks to their generous contributions of time, talent and treasure, last Saturday, we were able to distribute turkeys and Thanksgiving trimmings to 1,400 families who would otherwise not be able to enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving celebration in their own homes this Thursday.
View Event Photos
Photos courtesy of Volunteer Photographers Robert Kendrick, frequently featured in National Geographic, and Alicia Santana, student at the University of Texas at Austin
Hands for Hope 2011 received media coverage from YNN, ynn.com, KXAN, KVUE, kvue.com, Fox 7, Univision 62, KUT, an online blog by an Americorps VISTA volunteer with the Theatre Action Project, and thousands of media impressions on Facebook and Twitter.
A total of 137 volunteers led by eight volunteer fearless team leaders worked together like a well-oiled machine. We distributed turkeys and trimmings to more families than any previous year, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves despite all the heavy lifting, box-cutting and cart pushing that had to be done. Thank you!
Without the support of our friends, community partners and volunteers, Hands for Hope 2011 wouldn't have been the tremendous success it was. We are incredibly grateful to all those who helped us come together to help those in need and became part of our mission of hope!
THANK YOU and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
H4H Fundraiser Update
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Our Hands for Hope fundraiser will help us raise awareness of hunger in Austin through Hands for Hope and continue fighting against hunger through El Buen Samaritano's year-round basic needs program. We did it. We're currently at 100 percent of our goal!
We thank the following sponsors!
Hope Sponsors:
Hero Wall Sponsors:
*In-kind contribution. See H4H Food Drive Update below.
Thanks to those who've so generously contributed:
H4H Food Drive Update
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
To reach our goal to provide Thanksgiving Care Packages to 1,400 families, we'll need to gather 1,400 care packages, consisting of the following non-perishible items:
2 boxes of stuffing
2 boxes of mashed potatoes
2 packets of whole grain biscuit mix
5 16-oz. cans of vegetables
2 16-oz. cans of cranberry sauce
1 packet of gravy mix
THANKS to the following in-kind contributors WE HAVE REACHED OUR FOOD DRIVE GOAL!!
THANK YOU!
Why Hands for Hope?
We know that hunger is a real concern for thousands of Austin-area families. The 2010 Census showed that almost 20 percent of Travis County residents live in poverty and struggle to secure basic needs. Hands for Hope helps extend a spirit of gratitude and service by bringing together individuals from all parts of Austin to help make a Thanksgiving celebration a reality for families who could otherwise not afford it.
How many people benefit?
Last year, thanks to the generous support from our partners, we provided 1,200 families with all the ingredients needed to prepare Thanksgiving meals. This year is El Buen Samaritano's 25th year of service, and our goal is to provide Thanksgiving Care Packages to 1,400 families on Saturday, November 19, 2011.
Media coverage:
El Buen Samaritano's Hands for Hope Thanksgiving Event receives wide coverage through both Spanish and English media outlets. Last year, the event received more than 1,000,000 media impressions with coverage on broadcast news and print media as well as a variety of community blogs and social media platforms.
Ongoing efforts:
El Buen Samaritano's food pantry helps hundreds of Austin families place food on their tables throughout the year. In 2010, a monthly average of 400 families was able to put food on their table thanks to the food pantry. That's a rough estimate of 1,600 individuals a month who were able to access El Buen Samaritano's family-focused system of care through its food pantry.
Help us spread the word and raise awareness of hunger in Austin:
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Event Details:
Hands for Hope 2011 will take place as follows:
Registration Day 1:
Saturday, October 29, 2011
from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Registration Day 2:
Thursday, November 10, 2011
from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Registration Day 3:
Saturday, November 12, 2011
from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Distribution Day:
Saturday, November 19, 2011
from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
El Buen Samaritano Episcopal Mission, Community Bldg.
7000 Woodhue Dr., Austin, Texas 78745
View map
Only qualified individuals will be eligible for registration. Qualified individuals are those whose gross monthly income is up to 185 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
| Download the English Flyer | Download the Spanish Flyer |
Watch the video from last year's event:
For more information, contact Erica Solis.
