Community

Pulling together to offer free Thanksgiving meals on the North Fork

SCCC, Thankgiving, Culinary Arts School in Riverhead
BARBARAELLEN KOCH PHOTO | Culinary students Stacey Green (left) and Chadrick Brittan carving up turkeys Wednesday morning in Riverhead.

Suffolk County Community College’s Culinary School in downtown Riverhead partnered again this year with the Dominican Sisters to cook and prepare about 140 dinners for long-term patients and home-bound seniors of the Dominican Sisters of Hampton Bays.

The money for the feast was raised by staff and local businesses on the North and South forks, so it was a collaboration of a lot of people.

Chef instructor Vinny Winn worked with about two dozen students in the culinary’s kitchen, preparing 15 20-pound turkeys, mashed and sweet potatoes, gravy, green beans, stuffing, rolls, cranberry sauce and apple and pumpkin pies.

Aquebogue and Hampton Bays Elementary Schools students made and decorated trays for the meals.

There are efforts across the North Fork to help feed the less-fortunate this Thanksgiving holiday.

• Today, Wednesday, the Lowe’s store on Route 58 in Riverhead is giving out Thanksgiving meals in a bag consisting of turkey, corn, mashed potatoes and rolls. They prepared 500 bags and started giving them out at 11 a.m. and will continue to do so until they run out.

The following are meals being served Thursday, Thanksgiving, and the times:

• North Fork Apostolate, in the McGann-Mercy High School cafeteria in Riverhead on Ostrander Avenue from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m..

• Church of the Harvest at 582 Raynor Avenue in Riverhead from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m..

• Friendship Baptist Church at 59 anchor St. in Flanders from noon to 3 p.m..

• First Universalist Church of Southold on the Main Road starting at 1 p.m. call to reserve 765-3494.