Ilsa Minor | Daily Press With the support of local businesses, The Community Foundation for Delta County and the Escanaba Vet Center provided free turkeys and other Thanksgiving foods to veterans in need Tuesday during a drive-through event held at the Vet Center. The items distributed included everything to make a traditional Thanksgiving meal, including pumpkin pie and whipped topping, rolls, ham, and potatoes. Above, representatives from the Community Foundation load the food into the back of a veteran’s vehicle.

ESCANABA — The Community Foundation for Delta County distributed Thanksgiving food baskets to area veterans Tuesday. Distribution took place at the Escanaba Veterans Center. Another food basket distribution took place in Gladstone.

“On behalf of needy Delta County Veterans and myself, I cannot thank the Community Foundation for Delta County enough for all their hard work and generosity in providing much needed food baskets to our Delta County veterans,” said Ken Milam, Veterans Outreach Program specialist for the Escanaba Veterans Center. “We contact Delta County veterans and get a count of those who are in need of food for the upcoming holiday season. I get a count and call the Community Foundation for Delta County with a number of baskets needed and they take over from there. They organize everything from the food items needed for the baskets, arrange assembly and pick-up times, getting dona

tions, paying for the food baskets and help with the distribution”.

“The Community Foundation Board of Trustees and staff are more than happy to do the work it takes to provide our Delta County Veterans in need with food baskets for the upcoming holiday season. Being a veteran myself, I can tell you that the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees and staff have the upmost respect for all veterans and truly appreciate all they have done for us and our nation,” said Bob VanDamme, board chair of the Community Foundation for Delta County.

Organizations that made donations to make the food baskets possible include: Elmer’s County Market, pumpkin pies; Feeding America, special pricing on the turkeys and hams; Meijer, special pricing on food basket items; Thrivent, gift cards from Action Team members; and Walmart, pumpkin pies.s