Local Businesses, 'God Friended Me' Star Help Bronx Residents With Thanksgiving Meals
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A group of businesses got residents in the South Bronx ready for Thanksgiving, and did it with the help of a star you see each week on CBS.
The line began forming overnight as families in need of a Thanksgiving meal gathered at The Point Community Development Center on Garrison Avenue.
Families got more than turkeys thanks to local partnerships and companies like Baldor, headquartered in the neighborhood.
"Especially this area of the Bronx, it doesn't have any real supermarkets, grocery stores that carry a lot of fresh produce so it's part of our drive to bring fresh produce to this community," Baldor CFO Eileen Manitsas told CBS2's Clark Fouraker.
Some of meals were handed out by actor Malik Yoba from the CBS show "God Friended Me."
"Food is very powerful. People are hungry. So when art imitates life and I get to play a developer that cares about community and feed people which is actually dialogue in the show, I'm doing that in real life," Yoba said.
The drive will feed about 500 families this Thanksgiving.
"This is so beautiful I don't know what the people would do without them," Charlotte Wright said.
Wright was one of the first people in line, reportedly arriving around 3 a.m.
The Point community center works with many families year round and has hosted the Thanksgiving drive for the past four years.
"This district was for many years the poorest congressional district in the United States and now we're still up there in terms of the need," Maria Torres, COO for The Point explained.
The food distributed Saturday is unprepared so to encourage families to take part in preparing the meal together.
"I'm actually a chef, so I cook. I cook every year. This year I'm cooking and then we're going to gather at one apartment and enjoy together," Alberto Rodriguez said.
Thanks to help of local volunteers, these Bronx neighbors are now looking forward to a holiday filled with families and friends.