“There’s more people this year than normally,” House of Bread kitchen manager Taraisa Fecke said.
Serving meals since 1983, the community kitchen in the Jane Reece neighborhood provides a hot lunch welcome to all 365 days a year, and that includes all holidays.
The traditional Thanksgiving dinner was served up 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday.
Fecke said this year the Thanksgiving meal was to-go.
“Normally the guests would get to sit down and enjoy their food, and this year they have to go through the line and get it to go. Everybody has to stay apart. They all have to wear masks,” Fecke said. “Donations are good, though, actually a little higher this year.”
She said they typically serve about 250 guests each meal.
House of Bread wasn’t the only meal provider switching it up this year. As the Dayton Daily News reported earlier this week, local organizations still prepared free Thanksgiving meals for distribution, but due to COVID-19, most opted for meals to-go.
Chef Daryl Dalton said they started the day before to prepare the meal, which included traditional food such as mashed potatoes, yams, turkey, dinner rolls, and fruit.
“It takes a lot to prepare for today,” Dalton said.
For those who wish to help out House of Bread, the organization is accepting cash donations or other items from its wish list, which is posted at houseofbread.org/how-to-help-during-pandemic.
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