Mark your calendar now for community Thanksgiving event

Editor:

In just four months, the 4th Annual Gunnison Community Thanksgiving will take place on Nov. 26.

Between now and Thanksgiving Day, four important things will happen:

1. First, neighbors will gather around conference tables, over coffee, and through countless emails and conversations to ask a simple question: How can we make sure everyone in Gunnison County feels welcomed, cared for, and connected on Thanksgiving Day?
2. Second, volunteers will work through the details that transform an idea into an experience. They will discuss menu planning, decorations, sponsorships, children’s activities, delivery routes, translation services, and ways to make the event more accessible and inviting. Every detail, large and small, is viewed through the lens of hospitality.
3. Third, preparations will take shape throughout the community. Marketing materials will be designed and distributed, food and supplies will be purchased and stored, and dozens of logistical pieces will come together behind the scenes.
4. Fourth, volunteers from across the valley will step forward to serve, while donors and sponsors help make the event possible. Because bringing 500 neighbors together for Thanksgiving isn't the work of one person, it's the work of many.

When Thanksgiving Day arrives, what many people see as a single meal is actually the result of months of planning from neighbors who believe in showing up for one another. And understand that for some, Thanksgiving is a cherished celebration, while for others it can be a difficult or lonely day.

I hope you'll join me in marking your calendar for the 4th Annual Gunnison Community Thanksgiving on Nov. 26. It's shaping up to be another wonderful day of food, friendship, and community.

Interested in helping plan this year's event? Contact Janet Nelson-Cox at janetdiligenthands@gmail.com to be added to the planning email list.

Jodi Payne Krieger

Gunnison Community Thanksgiving