Giving thanks in abundance

The holiday season is upon us and in the spirit of sharing, H-E-B is setting the table for more than 250,000 people across Texas.

The grocery store chain will host its annual Feast of Sharing from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday at the Jacob Brown Auditorium in Brownsville. A feast in McAllen was held on Sunday.

H-E-B sponsors the event in 31 cities across Texas and Mexico to give back to the community.

“Our main purpose is the fact that we want to bring the people in the community together,” said Yvonne Loflin, H-E-B border region public affairs specialist. “We want to thank them. We also want to provide hunger relief for any family, anybody in the community that needs assistance.”

With the help of hundreds of volunteers, the company is prepared to serve between 8,000 to 12,000 meals Wednesday in Brownsville and more than 250,000 in the state, Loflin said.

“We prepare it as early as 4 in the morning,” Loflin said. “We have people on board that start slicing prepared turkey at 5 o’clock in the morning. It is an all-day process but everything is freshly made there.”

She said the turkey breast they serve is pre-cooked and the rest of the meal– mashed potatoes, green beans, cornbread dressing, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie–is prepared that day in mobile kitchens next to the location.

At each location, H-E-B provides 3,000 pounds of sliced turkey, 2,500 pounds of cornbread dressing, 750 pumpkin pies, 380 gallons of mashed potatoes, 140 gallons of turkey gravy and 95 gallons of cranberry sauce.

As guests enjoy their meal, live entertainment will be provided.