Why I Turkey...

 





Here is the information for Turkeys 2013.

Thanks so much for helping to make Thanksgiving possible for the less-served of
our community

This year’s date for Turkeys Giving Away Turkeys is Saturday, November 23rd. We will meet at Beavercreek Campus at 10am and join team leaders to head out to 4 different locations: Beavercreek, Huber Heights, Fairborn, Centerville, or a place of your choice.

How to participate: Join together as family, friends, or a small group to fill up the IKEA bag located at the exits around the building, with items listed below. 

Turkey’s Giving Away Turkey’s List.
2 Cans Corn
2 Cans Green Beans
1 Large Can Yams
1 Can Cranberry Sauce
1 Box Au Gratin Potatoes
1 Box Brownies
2 Boxes Mac and Cheese
1 Dinner Bag Rolls
1 Box Stuffing Mix
1 FROZEN Turkey !
Optional:
1 Pie
Fresh Veggies
Roasting Pan
Fun Stuff !
 
Important Instructions:
If you are going on the outreach...Please leave your dinner in your car then come into our main room for instructions.
 
Not going on the outreach, and you only want to participate by donating a turkey
dinner ...Please drop the dinner off at the Vineyard at 9am.

 

 Why I Turkey...

  Church gives away 500 Thanksgiving dinners

Volunteers surprise families with meal deliveries.

By Mark Gokavi, Staff Writer 12:05 AM Sunday, November 20, 2011
BEAVERCREEK — About 500 families got a knock on the door Saturday morning and received a free Thanksgiving dinner.

The Vineyard Church of Dayton and Beavercreek packed and delivered that many meals to families in Fairborn, Xenia, Huber Heights and Centerville as part of their “Turkeys Giving Away Turkeys” initiative.

Organizer Steve Bowen said hundreds of volunteers put together packages including a frozen turkey, corn, green beans, yams, cranberry sauce, potatoes, macaroni and cheese, stuffing, rolls and more.

“To see the look on somebody’s face when you show up with a complete dinner and they didn’t know where their food was going to come from, it’s hard to believe,” said Scott Sliver, one of the pastors at The Vineyard.

The Vineyard also deliver regular groceries to families in need in Huber Heights, Fairborn, and Dayton which is a program they help other groups with each month.

“The face of the poor is changing around town,” Sliver said. “It’s really hit the middle class pretty hard.”

We had a blast serving those in need by giving away the 550 turkey dinners. 
The people who served were surprised, encouraged and in some cases moved to tears. God space was created by the simple act of kindness. People were able to show care to the person served by having a listening ear which often let to loving hugs and significant prayer.

• One mom and daughter had just moved in the day before. They were going out to sell some some households so that they could purchase needed items for their Thanksgiving day dinner. They were more than surprised when they received the dinner offered for free.

• One of our team members was so moved by what he saw in one apartment that he ran back to the truck to pick up a boxed dinner for a lady who only had icecubes in her fridge. He then spent time caring for her, listening to her story and praying for her needs.

• Another family who served had just delivered their turkey and went back to the truck to grab a dinner for another person in need. When they arrived they relized there were no more dinners, so they went to Kroger and purchased a full dinner for a grateful family.

• Several families who served were not aware of people in such need within their very community. They were surprised, glad they could help, yet at the same time upset by what they saw. They also came away from the experience more personally grateful and thankful.

I often ask the question, How can you know and see need unless you position yourself to venture out into your community? The answer, you can't.

Going, seeing, serving and praying for others is really the only way to receive a personal ah-ha moment. Going, serving and loving often is the catalyst that sparks  a greater commitment toward personal involvement, lifestyle change, and a thankful gratitude.

Someone asked me, How do you serve the less served week in and week out, it must affect you? 

I answer, Jesus said the poor you will have with you always, so I understand whatever I do in a small way, or in a great way, is good enough. I can't possibly meet every persons need, but I can meet some needs and pray. 

Going out into our community also helps keep me grounded, humbled, and personally grateful for all I have received... like the ability to pay my bills, to have heat, to have running water, to have clothing, to have a family that is somewhat normal, and to have great relationships. It's why I Turkey.

How do you learn to serve? By serving.
How to you learn to love? By loving.
How do you learn to care? By going and seeing with your heart.
How do you learn to pray? By praying.

What we do is not rocket science by any means, it's just faith that works through love.