The Rotary Cub of Brookline helped support and encourage many families gather virtually to celebrate the holiday this year as well as provide Thanksgiving dinners for clients of the Brookline Food Pantry. The Brookline club also orchestrated a drive-by pick up on Noveember 25 of pre-purchased, traditional Thanksgiving dinners. From 11:00Am to 5:00PM a parade of cars lined up for curbside pick-up of about 200 pre-purchased, traditional Thanksgiving dinners at Vine Ripe Grill, 1281 West Roxbury Pkwy, Chestnut Hill.
Brookline Rotary has helped the community address local issues since 1938.Recognizing that food insufficiency was even greater this year than last and that many local residents would not be safe traveling to family/friends this year, the club devised a plan to help local families enjoy Thanksgiving dinner.
Though the Food Pantry was planning on their traditional bag of Thanksgiving groceries, many clients would not be able to take advantage of these groceries. Brookline residents were invited to purchase a pre-cooked, traditional dinner and/or purchase a dinner for a client of the Food Pantry. It was important that the program was contactless.
Close to 200 meals were sold via the internet/phone and had curbside pick-up on the 25th. The donated meals were coordinated with the Brookline Food Pantry and two other local organizations, the Elks and the American Legion Post, that are purchasing meals for the Brookline Senior Center. All labor and delivery is being done by volunteers from Rotary and the Food Pantry. An additional benefit of the program was to support three local businesses: Vine Ripe Grill, Rifrullo Cafe, and Drive- By Pies who, like all local businesses, have been struggling. Vine Ripe Grill also did their long running tradition of a Thanksgiving dinner for Brookline Housing residents on Wednesday, November 24 with the help of the Brookline Police Department to deliver these meals.
