Community Action Partnership of Strafford County (CAPSC) has begun preparations for its upcoming Thanksgiving Meal Basket Program. So far, more than 950 families have signed up for the program, which will provide a Thanksgiving dinner designed to feed a family of four to those facing financial difficulties within Strafford County.

On average, the Thanksgiving and Holiday Food Basket Program has served between 750 and 850 families in Strafford County each year. Looking to meet the increasing needs of the community, CAPSC plans to serve as many as 1,000 Thanksgiving Food Baskets this year.

Unlike many other programs offered by CAPSC, there are no prerequisites for the Thanksgiving Basket Program. Families are only required to fill out a form to request a basket. Once registered for a Thanksgiving Meal Basket, families are also eligible to receive a Holiday Meal Basket, which is distributed at the end of December.

Both baskets contain traditional holiday meal items such as canned vegetables (including corn, green beans, carrots, and peas), stuffing and gravy mixes, dessert mixes, cranberry sauce, and more. To ensure that families in Strafford County can enjoy a filling and nutritious meal, the baskets also include grocery store gift cards, allowing families to purchase a protein of their choice for each holiday meal.

As in previous years, CAPSC received an initial $15,000 sponsorship from local partner D.F. Richard Energy, which will be used to purchase many of the necessary items, such as gift cards and other food supplies. An additional $5,000 donation from D.F. Richard will support both the Thanksgiving and Holiday Meal Basket Programs, bringing their total contribution to $20,000.

Other large donations, such as one from Seacoast Charter School—which brought in over 1,800 pounds of food—have also helped provide specific items for the basket program.

CAPSC employees have been diligent with each donation, setting aside specific items and keeping holiday food basket donations in a separate space, ready to be used when the time comes. So far, hundreds of cans have been organized and prepared for inclusion in the baskets. However, with over 1,000 families to feed, the need for additional donations remains high.

To support this need, CAPSC has scheduled a food drive at the Rochester Hannaford on Milton Road on November 15. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., CAPSC employees and volunteers will ask shoppers to donate Thanksgiving Basket–specific items such as canned or fresh vegetables, stuffing and gravy mixes, dessert mixes, and more, in an effort to collect additional supplies for the baskets.

An additional food drive is planned for December 6, also from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Rochester Hannaford on Milton Road, to collect food for the Holiday Food Baskets.

Once assembled, the Thanksgiving Baskets will be distributed at the CAPSC Main Outreach Office in Dover, located at 577 Central Avenue, on three separate occasions:

• Thursday, November 20, from 3:30 to 7 p.m.
• Friday, November 21, from 3:30 to 7 p.m.
• Monday, November 23, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

More information about the Thanksgiving and Holiday Food Basket Programs is available at Holiday Food Baskets – CAPSC.