Phoenix Police Help Exceed 10K Turkey Donation Goal For Those In Need
By Staff Reporter |
“Protect and serve” means more than just keeping the peace and enforcing the laws — for Phoenix police, it means ensuring their neighbors have plenty on their tables this Thanksgiving.
Phoenix Police Department’s Desert Horizon Precinct donated 865 turkeys for St. Mary’s Food Bank on Tuesday morning. They couldn’t do it alone: community members rallied around their local department’s cause, making the massive contribution possible.
The collaborative effort between community and police allowed St. Mary’s Food Bank to not only reach but exceed its goal of 10,000 turkey donations this year.
The generosity means that much more, as Thanksgiving prices remained higher than they were several years ago, and more families have turned to food banks for help amid rising inflation. St. Mary’s Food Bank has around 1,500 families coming through its Phoenix Neighborhood Food Center every weekday alone, more than during the height of the 2020 pandemic.
The Arizona Food Bank Network has reported its monthly service numbers amounting to over 600,000 individuals. In July, the state saw a record number of households turning to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits: over 460,000 families. HonorHealth Desert Mission Food Bank reported serving double the number of households daily.
According to the USDA, about 12 percent of Arizona households met the threshold for food insecurity, meaning they lacked consistent access to enough food. Food inflation rose 25 percent from 2019 to 2023 (according to the USDA), with grocery prices increasing well over one percent in the past year alone (according to the Consumer Price Index). That latter increase marked a five percent jump from 2022 to 2023.
Officers also assisted with loading the turkeys and food boxes at the food bank’s headquarters.
St. Mary’s Food Bank president and CEO, Milt Lou, said in a press release that the donation turnout was “exciting.” Lou envisioned the happy scene to be had on Thanksgiving Day, when the many families that came to them for help walked away with a full Thanksgiving spread.
“[We’re happy] to make sure that every family that comes to us today and tomorrow will receive a turkey along with all the fixings, fresh produce, and bread,” said Lou.
Phoenix Police interim chief Michael Sullivan said in that same press release that he hopes this effort serves to show the reliability and dedication of his officers.
“These donations tell me you can bet on the Phoenix PD to come through when you need us and bet on the City of Phoenix,” said Sullivan. “The beauty of Phoenix’s community — now that’s something to be thankful for.”
St. Mary’s Food Bank also collected donations to buy turkeys for this year’s distribution. A $20 donation assured the purchase of one turkey and a meal of pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and a produce bag including onions, carrots, and potatoes.
This year, St. Mary’s Food Bank expects to distribute around 23,000 turkeys across the Valley. That’s above its total of 21,000 turkeys distributed last year.
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