DC Homeless Receive Thanksgiving Meal From Georgetown Restaurant

GEORGETOWN, D.C. — While families fretted over spending the holidays apart from loved ones, a whole different segment of the population - the homeless - wondered what they would even eat and how they would stay warm. Undeterred by the coronavirus pandemic, Béa O'Connor and her team at Pinstripes Georgetown decided for the second year in a row to feed the homeless in D.C.

"I do something every year. Last year, I started with feeding 100 homeless and less fortunate people in a restaurant and this year, since I couldn’t do it inside, I wanted to at least double it, so I did 254 bagged full thanksgiving meals," O'Connor told Patch.

So O'Connor and volunteers assembled 300 individually packaged Thanksgiving meals for the homeless community and passed them out at the main circles throughout the District via a tour bus. All volunteers who helped distribute the meals wore masks and were socially distanced, organizers said.

"The delivery went awesome. We had multiple companies donate such as Sysco and Pinstripes and Alsco, DC Nation Tours, etc. Most of the sides were bought by me with some companies chipping in for things. Usually I get everything donated, but this year had so many ups and downs I had about five volunteers to help me pack and deliver but my chef Luis Gachupin and I did all the cooking," she said.

O'Connor's goal for next year is 1,000 bags of food and more volunteers. For her first event, approximately 140 people signed up to help.

Pinstripes in Georgetown offers made-from-scratch meals along with bowling, bocce and space for entertaining and special events. It is located at 1064 Wisconsin Ave. NW.

How To Support The Patch Holiday Food Drive

Patch has teamed with Feeding America to help raise awareness on behalf of the millions of Americans facing hunger. Feeding America, which supports 200 food banks across the country, estimates that in 2020, more than 50 million Americans will not have enough nutritious food to eat due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. This is a Patch social good project; Feeding America receives 100 percent of donations. Find out how you can donate in your community or find a food pantry near you.