It was another big day of giving at Southland Church in Steinbach on Friday, October 10, as the church held its 20th annual Thanksgiving Food and Clothing Drive giveaway day, an event that continues to make a real difference in the community. Nearly 3,000 people receive food and clothing items on giveaway day. Teena Cole from Southland Church says the turnout was once again remarkable. “This year, 2,904 people came through the doors,” she says. “For the last few years, we’ve done 1,800 hampers, which is quite the undertaking. It’s a great hamper; it’s got bread, vegetables, fruit, and then canned goods and dried goods. It’s quite a well-rounded hamper.” This year, Cole says the church gave away 1,726 food hampers this year, with a few extras left over for those who might come by later needing one. Lined Up Since Dawn Cole said that during giveaway day, the energy in the building was high, and so was the turnout. “It is going incredibly. People were lined up since 6 a.m. waiting to get in the doors at 9. We’ve just had so many people actually receive things, specific things they were looking for, in specific sizes, even in specific colours they were hoping for. We’re still in the thick of it. It’s busy, but we are just so grateful to be able to serve our community like this and serve those who are in need.” Volunteers Power the Effort Cole says the event wouldn’t be possible without a huge team of volunteers on giveaway day. “Oh my, there are just so many people who have donated,” she said. “The community has donated clothing, and so many people have contributed to the food hampers. And just their time, we’ve had, I would say, about 250 volunteers today alone. And that’s not even counting the last two weeks of volunteers we’ve had here all day, every day. We’re so grateful.” Thanksgiving Spirit in Action Coming right before Thanksgiving weekend, Cole says the timing of the event was especially meaningful. “When I think about people, particularly receiving food hampers, we’ve encountered a few who have had very, very little,” she shared. “And to receive a food hamper, to know that they can actually celebrate Thanksgiving in their own way, and just to know that they’ve been cared for, that really fills my heart.” An Incredible Success While there’s no exact way to count how many bags of clothing went out the door, Cole says the response was overwhelming. “All in all, it was an incredible success,” she said. After two decades, Southland Church’s annual Thanksgiving Food and Clothing giveaway day continues to grow and continues to be a powerful reminder of what community, compassion, and generosity look like in action.