30th Anniversary Of LCAC = More Than 150,000 Turkeys Delivered!
Lakewood Charitable Assistance Corporation has been dedicated to alleviating hunger at the holiday season for 30 years. In 1988, a small board of dedicated volunteers formalized LCAC as a nonprofit organization. Since that time, LCAC has delivered more than 150,000 frozen turkeys, along with bagloads of canned goods, perishable and non-perishable items to Lakewood families and seniors in need. LCAC is able to provide enough food for families to host traditional holiday celebrations because of the generosity of its many donors, sponsors and most importantly, an army of hundreds of volunteers.
LCAC partners with Lakewood City Schools, Lakewood Community Service Center, and Lakewood Division of Aging for referrals based on identified need. Over the course of a year, LCAC’s board reaches out to the community to raise a minimum of $25,000 needed to purchase food supplies for 600+ households. LCAC has remained true to its origins of an all-volunteer board, which assumes any administrative costs, assuring that 100% of all donations go directly toward hunger relief.
“It takes a village,” and Lakewood is a village that’s all heart. Words fail in adequately describing the outpouring of community support at LCAC’s holiday events. Students at public and parochial schools collect non-perishables weeks ahead. On the Friday eve of “turkey day,” volunteers begin arriving at the Masonic Temple at 9:30 am to sort the non-perishable items. At 6:00 that evening, more volunteers form a packing line to bag the sorted food.
Things really start hopping at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday when the “turkey truck” arrives with all the turkeys and fresh/frozen items. Hundreds of volunteers of all ages organize to bag and prep all the food items for delivery. By 10:30 a.m., a caravan of cars is lined up to deliver the food to hundreds of Lakewood homes.
Want to get involved? Help is needed at LCAC’s upcoming event. No need to pre-register, just come when you can. This is a great activity for all ages.
Lakewood Masonic Temple - 15300 Detroit Ave.
Friday, November 16th – 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. – food donations are collected and sorted. 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. – non-perishable food bags are filled.
Saturday, November 17th – 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. – perishable food is bagged and items are prepped to deliver. 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – food baskets delivered to 300 Lakewood households.
**Event is held regardless of weather, so dress to stay warm and dry.**
Lakewood Charitable Assistance Corp. is a non-profit, all-volunteer organization, dedicated to improving the quality of life of Lakewood’s families in need. For more information, or to make a monetary donation, visit us at www.LCAC.info or check out our Lakewood Charitable Assistance Corp. Facebook page.