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Turkey Dinner Delivery Available

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 14, 2007

If you can't cook your own Thanksgiving feast, and dining out isn't an option, a Zephyrhills church invites you to call.
First Assembly of God church in Zephyrhills is registering recipients for Thanksgiving To Go, which will feed people in need and deliver meals to the homebound in and around the city.

To sign up, call (813) 788-3490 or e-mail Rachel Hedrick, who is in charge of women's ministries, at rachel@zephyrhillsfirst.com.

Ashleigh Miller, then a 20-year-old college student and director of missions, suggested Thanksgiving To Go in June 2005. She and an army of helpers spent the next five months planning and preparing.

Pastor Tony Graffam said the whole idea was to connect with the community.

"I think outreach is the responsibility of the church and should be part of every church," he said in November 2005.

That first Thanksgiving morning, meals of turkey, potatoes, cranberry sauce and green beans were boxed and ready to be delivered. A buffet table was lined with volunteers ready to serve walk-ins.

A map littered with thumb tacks was on the stage at the front of the church auditorium. Miller had marked each delivery to be made with colored tacks. She assigned routes to each driver and handed them clipboards with names of the recipients and maps to their homes.

By 2 p.m., the volunteers had delivered half the meals to folks around town. An additional 100 meals had been doled out to people who came to the church at 36322 State Road 54 W.

For more on First Assembly and its other programs, go to zephyrhillsfirst.com.

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