With Thanksgiving and the holiday season approaching, many people are gathering to see their families and share a meal together. However, for some in the 5 Cities area, this may not be very realistic. With the help of many volunteers, Lucia Mar School District is putting together meal boxes for families in need this holiday season.

“We have had families sign up from the last two weeks on our website and they have put how many children they have [ages] 0-18. Any family, wherever they are from, can get a box,”Jamie Garcia, a volunteer and local parent who is helping organize the drive, said. 

The food itself was provided by many local donations and farms.

“Some of it was donated [from] Bautista Farms, Apio/ Curation Foods, some of it we purchased,” Garcia said. “We also got stuff from the food bank.” 

In total, for the 5 Cities side, there were 477 boxes prepared. For Nipomo’s side of the operation, there were 333. 

To get the boxes, families will pick them up. For families that won’t be able to pick them up, volunteers will deliver them.

Because of this selfless act by many in the community and school district, families who wouldn’t have access to a meal now get to enjoy food with their family. That is something to be thankful for.