Volunteers Prepare For Laramie’s Heartwarming Thanksgiving Feast

Organizers of the Laramie Community Thanksgiving Dinner have been hard at work getting ready for the 28th Annual Dinner on November 27 (Thanksgiving Day) at the Eppson Center from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

The center is located at 1560 North Third Street n Laramie.

 'It's A Big Project"

Janet Sexton, who coordinates the Thanksgiving Dinner, says it's a big project, with about 75 volunteers helping out.. She says they expect to cook about 40 turkeys and to serve about 800-900 meals. That will include about 300 meals delivered to residences in addition to people who eat at the Eppson Center as well as curbside meals picked up by people.

Sexton says 33 donors have helped with this year's event, ranging from private citizens to businesses. The Wyoming Hunger Initiative, headed by Wyoming First Lady Jenny Gordon, is also a donor

Sexton says when the community meals first started many years ago they were held in people's private homes. But when it got too big for that it was moved to St, Laurence School. It then moved to the Eppson Center. She credits the center for being gracious hosts for the event, adding ''We couldn't do it without the Eppson Center."

But while the event is held at a senior center, she doesn't want people to think the dinner is only for seniors. ''It's for everyone" she said, adding that includes families, single people spending the holiday alone and anyone else who cares to drop by.

Sometimes that even includes travelers. Sexton recalls one year there was a big crash on the Interstate 80 summit. Emergency responders asked for help feeding  people stranded by the crash, and dinner organizers were able to come up without about 100 extra meals for those folks.

Sexton says she has coordinated the event for about a dozen years, and one of the first things she did was to do away with a buffet style event in favor of something a little more reminiscent of a family dinner. So people come in and are seated at tables by volunteers in an effort to create a more 'home for the holidays" atmosphere.