HERRIN, Ill. (WSIL)-- As families gather to celebrate Thanksgiving, a local town is making sure everyone has a holiday meal.
Over the past 35 years, the city of Herrin has opened its doors to the community for the annual Mayor Ed Quaglia and Attorney Bart Mann Memorial Thanksgiving Dinner.
This year a lot of people are at the Herrin Civic Center enjoying a Thanksgiving meal put on by city officials.
Rebbeca Eairheart attended this year's meal with her family. She says she looks forward to the meal every year.
“Everybody needs to come out and eat some more,� Eairheart said.
Eairheart says she already had two plates of food and is now just enjoying the company of her family.
“I think Thanksgiving's good for all the people getting together and having a great time with family and friends,� Eairheart said.
Organizers say coming together is what their meal is all about. Ryan and Melissa Farley along with Kent Ingersoll say this is their fourth year running the event as a team.
“We hope to serve around 1200 meals today, and that includes the 275 that we did in delivery today. And we've probably done 300 in to-go orders and we've done about a hundred right now for Dine-in,� Farley said.
They have a lot of volunteers who donated their time to the community, including Father Mike Reyling from Our Lady of Mt Carmel Catholic Church who says it's good to give back.
“Giving a little of their day that they could be spending with their family to help out, it's just really a great sign of a community spirit that folks are coming together,� Father Reyling said.
After people finished eating, some spent time talking with others at the center before they left. Eairheart says her family will return every year as long as they have the annual Thanksgiving meal.
