Posted in the Daily Press – November 22, 2016 (To read entire article CLICK HERE)
Photo by James Quigg

At one table, 13-year-old Serena King happily ate her meal with her father beside her. Across from the young girl sat another family, with students seated beside them, with smiles splashed across their faces.

“There’s something that happens when we come together to serve,” said Rescue Mission Alliance Victor Valley Director Bill Edwards. “When we sit across the table from these people I believe we make their lives feel a little more normal.”

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, the Rescue Mission Alliance Victor Valley hosted its annual Thanksgiving Banquet and Turkey Giveaway as students and volunteers filled 160 holiday baskets to the brim while feeding over 2,000 people at the group’s annual event hosted at Victor Valley High School on Tuesday afternoon.

“It’s amazing to see the community and the students come together every year and work together for a great cause,” said Mission Volunteer Coordinator Jeremy George. “It’s a real blessing to do this. Some people may think the High Desert is disconnected when really there’s a lot of us who love to come together and help.”

The group told the Daily Press they began collecting turkeys at the beginning of October to ensure enough food was given out. However, around the end of that month a power outage at a local refrigerated storage site led to the loss of nearly 300 frozen turkeys for the Rescue Mission.

But with help from the community and local and private business, Edwards and George said the group was able to collect double the turkeys they lost and were thankful for everyone who helped raised between $5,000 and $6,000 for the banquet.

“The Lord just keeps multiplying and we were so fortunate with the donations we received. It was definitely an answer to prayer,” Edwards said.

About 100 VVHS students from the school’s Catering Club prepared the meals while other students and VVRM volunteers helped served the food to families in need inside the campus cafeteria.

“Cooking has always been a passion of mine and I’ve always wanted to learn,” said VVHS senior Izabelle Ramos, 17, of Victorville. “Doing something like this makes me feel good about myself and knowing that my talent is being used to help others is a wonderful feeling.”

As the day progressed, Girl Scout Leader Terry Bradford-Crane, with Troop No. 378, said her Apple Valley group spent the morning preparing the Thanksgiving gift baskets given to those who preregistered. Afterward, guests were escorted to the front of the school where vendors, a live band and a bounce house operator had set up on the high school’s lawn.

“This kind of generosity is really great to see in a community like this and seeing the younger people willing to help is equally as wonderful,” said Steve King, 35, of San Bernardino.