Hundreds fed for Thanksgiving by the Salvation Army

As rain poured on Thanksgiving Day, hundreds of folks from all walks of life gathered in the Spokane Salvation Army building for a free feast.

Around 400 plates filled with turkey, stuffing, potatoes and other fixings were prepared for the Thanksgiving feast. This is a tradition for the Salvation Army in Spokane, said Captain David Cain, who helped coordinate the meal.

“A lot of the folks that we serve are in some of the toughest social spaces in our community,” Cain said. “They’re facing some of the toughest issues – homelessness, poverty, they’re impacted by the foster care system, families that are exiting homelessness. So all of those things, they’re isolating. People are kind of driven to the fringes, and they feel alone.”

The Salvation Army puts on events like this to remind people that they are not alone. It is events like these that helped Cain get off the streets in California.

“16 years ago, the Salvation Army opened their doors to me when I was homeless and on the street and addicted to methamphetamines,” Cain said.

It changed his life.

“There were Salvation Army officers just like myself that cared for me. I’m moved by the ways that people loved me when I couldn’t love myself. That’s what our team embodies,” Cain said.

Benjamin Jackson, who lives in transitional housing down the road from the Salvation Army, came to the Thanksgiving meal with his girlfriend. Six years ago, Jackson was living on the streets and addicted to meth.

“Life was just bad all the way around,” Jackson said. “I started getting clean so I could see my children.”

Now, because of help Jackson got from the Salvation Army, he is sober and safe.

Cain walked around the room, hugging and shaking hands with people he was obviously familiar with. Many of the folks who showed up for the Thanksgiving meal are people Cain works with on a weekly basis.

“We serve about 200 families every day, five days a week, right here,” Cain said.

Kids come to the Salvation Army’s after-school program; families stay at transitional living facilities just down the road or at the Salvation Army’s 60-bed shelter. The whole purpose of it all is not to just provide people with a bed, a meal or shelter from the cold weather, Cain said.

“We carry a vision for people who can’t carry a vision for themselves,” Cain said. “… If our job was just to give someone a meal, I think we would be missing the point. We want to see people’s lives changed, and that happens when they’re reminded of their humanity and their worth.”

Some folks Cain works with are just down on their luck. They missed one too many rent payments or got behind on their medical bills. Others have addictions they cannot quite kick and are living on the streets, feeding themselves with what they can find in garbage cans, Cain said.

The Salvation Army provides food and shelter and then tries to help people get back to themselves, Cain said. If basic needs cannot be met, it is hard to get someone off the street and back to independent life, Cain said. People need to be reminded that they are cared for and seen, Cain said.

Hundreds of people helped put the feast together: a cub scout troop that came and decorated the room for Thanksgiving, Blessings and Beyond – a local organization that catered all the food for the feast – and volunteers who served the food.

More than 50 volunteers served plates and welcomed people into the building for the meal, including Derek McIalwain, his wife Hailey and their two daughters, 11-year-old Drew and 10-year-old Davylyn. The McIalwain’s will head over to their own Thanksgiving dinner with family in Spokane later, but first, Derek said they wanted to serve those who are struggling.

“It’s just a little part of our day that we can give back,” Derek said.

Derek and Hailey decided to bring the kids with them so they could see that other people are not as fortunate as they are.

“Not everybody lives the same way that we do,” Derek said.