Veterans get free Thanksgiving dinners, with a side of gratitude

TAMPA, Fla. - On this Thanksgiving Day, turkey meals are going to a very special bunch -- our veterans. 

Dwight Brown served our country and now serving in a different way as part of the vet volunteer program preparing the meal packages.

"We want our fellow service members to know we have their back. We still live by the mantra that that we never leave a service member behind," said Brown. 

Two dozen vets received a turkey and all the trimmings, along with gift cards and a few essentials. 

Making this all possible is DJ Reyes, a senior mentor for Hillsborough’s Veterans Treatment Court, and a Tampa law firm, Baker McKenzie, who decided what better way to say thank you. 

"We wanted to give back and give directly to veterans for all that they’ve done for us," explained Anthony Thalman, the product manager at the law firm who helped raise money for the turkey giveaway.  

Reyes and his team hit the road to deliver the goods to veterans like Michael Robb. He once served in the U.S. Navy and says Thanksgiving is even more special this year,

"It’s going to be fabulous now. I’m having my dear friends and family over. It’s going be wonderful," said Robb. 

Robb says the veterans court saved him, but the support doesn't end when you leave the courtroom. The team, he says, has his back, "one hundred percent.”

Vet Clifton Williams III got a special delivery too. He is a recent graduate of Veteran's Treatment Court and he knows Reyes was a big part of his success.

"I can see the transformation from the person that I was to the person that I am now. [Reyes] goes beyond. He’s my mentor," offered Williams.