Church group donates 10 Thanksgiving dinners to I-CARE

Credit: Bruce Matlock photo

Bishop Sam Thomas of Statesville Covenant Cathedral held the door for Monique Phoenix, Amanda Graham and Shelton Moore of I-CARE, as they carried 10 grocery bags containing Thanksgiving dinner to their cars Thursday.

By: Jim Mcnally | Mooresville Tribune
Published: November 20, 2009

As Thanksgiving nears, the harsh realities associated with the nation's less-than-stellar economy become more pronounced. And few have a greater awareness of these bleak facts than those in the people-helping business.

"It's a matter of supply and demand," said Amanda Graham, the director of family support services for I-CARE, Inc. "And the demand is much higher now. We have a real need in our community right now."

To help with that need, the Statesville Covenant Cathedral donated 10 complete Thanksgiving dinners to I-CARE.

Bishop Samuel Thomas is the pastor of Statesville Covenant. He also sits on the I-CARE board of directors.

"When I told the congregation about this need, they said they wanted to do something," Thomas said.
And so the church purchased 10 turkeys and 10 full grocery-bagfuls of all the fixings and Thomas told I-CARE to do the rest.

"I don't even want to know who the families are," Thomas said. "This is not about recognition, it's just about giving."

But Thomas is hoping the actions of his South Statesville church will inspire other congregations around Statesville and Iredell County to pitch in.

"It would be great if this sparked an interest in other churches to help fill this need that has gotten so much worse with the bad economy," Thomas said.

Graham said the 10 families selected to receive the meals came from two different I-CARE programs: Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (which is funded by a Community Services Block Grant); and Workforce Investment Act.

Graham said BOSS helps people recognize barriers that are keeping them from becoming self-sufficient and then works on removing those barriers.

The WIA program helps teens and young adults who have dropped out of school or encountered other problems get back on track to becoming productive citizens.

Workers from I-CARE picked up the meals at Statesville Covenant Thursday afternoon and delivered them to the families.

"They didn't know they were actually getting a meal," said I-CARE worker Monique Phoenix. "They just knew that a Thanksgiving surprise was coming."