Tampa church giving away thousands of free turkeys to families in need ahead of Thanksgiving

TAMPA, Fla. - Before the sun came up Saturday, around 60 volunteers at Winners’ Worship Center in Tampa got ready to hand out thousands of free turkeys to families in need.

"This number has grown," Pastor Brenda Fruster said. "As soon as we put out the flier, we people started registering," she said.

Pastor Fruster said about 2,000 people registered for the church’s annual Day of Thanks this year. Fruster and her late husband, Robert, started the turkey giveaway about 20 years ago.

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"It's all about helping others. It's about not just getting enough for me and my family, but what can I do for your family? How can I help your family? How can I help your family come out of this situation, come out of this hole? What can I do for you to pay it forward? What can I do for you to say, ‘Wow, this is what they did for me and now let me go back and do something,’" Fruster said.

By dawn, cars were already lined up. The line stretched down the street at times.

"We feel like right now, because of Helene and Milton, that the people in our community need the church, and they need organizations, because people are without food, they're still without  a place to stay. Some people are still in a hotel, So, we're trying our best to do our part in helping to restore the community," Fruster said.

Families on Saturday expressed their thanks for the help this holiday season.

"It’s a blessing for people that don’t have that. The hurricane has messed them up a lot," Bertha Williams, who came to the Day of Thanks, said.

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"It’s a great blessing," Shakema Jacobs, who was also in line Saturday, said. "It makes a big difference because I was out of power and lost a lot of food. So, it's helping out a lot," Jacobs said.

Volunteers also handed out groceries with the help of the nonprofit Farm Share.

"When we reached out to them, Helene had happened, and they're like, ‘Well, we're not sure if we can get there. And then Milton happened too, and they’re like, ‘We can't make any promises, but we're going to do everything that we can to get here,’ and they have been faithful," Fruster said.

"One company cannot do it. One church cannot do it. One person cannot do it. It takes a village to do what we're doing. So, we're thankful for it," Fruster said.

Winners’ Worship Center also offered social services information, Medicaid specialists, housing assistance resources and more on Saturday.

"In any event like this, you would think it's all about Thanksgiving, and it's all about a turkey. But we put our boots on the ground every day in this community, every single day, and we know the needs of the people that are in homes and those that are under the bridge. And so, we try to take our resources we bring Medicaid or medical attention to them. We have nurses and doctors on the ground today so that they can help them direct them to some place where they can go if we don't have it on ground," Fruster said.

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The church also has a resource center year-round, Pastor Fruster said.

"It’s not just a handout … but let me bring you in and let me teach you and let me show you how to put the bait on that and get that good fish, get that shark out there," she said.

The Day of Thanks also offered water baptisms for the first time this year.

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