On Thursday, November 23, Mothers In Action (MIA) will celebrate 22 years of providing Thanksgiving Day meals to Ward Villas Senior Apartment Complex and to those in need throughout the greater Los Angeles area and surrounding communities. MIA’s has a long list of elected officials, celebrities, law enforcement, and organizations that all come together to make this highly anticipated community service event work every year.
The Thanksgiving Day Senior Feed at Ward Villas is a traditional hot Thanksgiving dinner complete with turkey, cranberries, dressing, green beans, macaroni & cheese, salad, dessert and a beverage served and delivered to seniors or to those who are unable to leave their house because they are sick and shut-in. Every meal recipient will receive a Los Angeles Sentinel Newspaper, a hot meal, a greeting card in a recyclable bag. Seniors that are served onsite are treated to a good meal, live entertainment, the company of their special guests, friends and loved ones.
For the last 22 years, MIA have forged an ongoing partnership with Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker of Ward Villas Senior Complex. This partnership has brought a wealth of love and gratitude to the residents of Ward Villas and the community at large. Alongside Dupont-Walker, MIA has Holman United Methodist Church, who has been a partner for the last three years. MIA extends their gratefulness to media partners, the L.A. Sentinel & L.A. Watts Times for their editorial support, ads, donations, and staff volunteers over the years.
Ms. Mitchell and her sisters, Tamela and Pamela would also like to thank Danny Bakewell and their mother for teaching and showing the way to make a difference in the community.
The love that is poured out every year never ceases to amaze MIA president, Tracy Mitchell. From monetary donations, sodas, salad, bread, centerpieces, turkeys to recyclable bags, clean up, serving or delivering meals, Tracy is extremely grateful to all the volunteers, donors and sponsors who come out to make this day happen.
Thanksgiving at Ward Villas was started by the late Brenda Marsh Mitchell and Lillian Mobley in 1995 to give seniors a holiday meal, who are surprisingly forgotten or neglected during the holiday season. It has been affirmed by both Brenda and Tracy that on Thanksgiving Day, that unfortunately the faces of the volunteers who deliver the meals to the seniors and shut in are sometimes the only visitation the recipients of the meals receive that day.
“Words cannot express the depths of our gratitude for the elected officials and their continuous support of Mothers In Action: Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer, Councilmember Curren Price of 9th District, and Councilmember Marqueece Harris – Dawson of 8th District,” said Mitchell.
Special thanks to Danny Bakewell, The Bakewell Family Foundation, Baldwin Bethany CDC of Greater Bethany Church of West Los Angeles (Rod Miles), Bobbie Jean Anderson, Brandiva & Sir Jerk, Carolyn Fowler, Carrie Konjoyan, Chef Marilyn, Dolores Spears, Fabian Wesson, Fred Childress, Girl Scout Troop 1565 along with their leaders and mothers, Glory Foods, Henrietta Perkins-Barkley, Howard & Associates, Isadore Hall, Joyce Jamison, LAPD South Traffic Division CTSU, LAUSD Board member Dr. George McKenna of District 1, Lisa Square, Mike Stringer, Mothers In Action staff, Mothers Nutritional Center, Oscar Joel Bryant Foundation, Renita Lorden, Richard Calhoun, Robert Torrence, Sharon Robinson, Shawn Newmann, The Randolph Family, The Starving Actor, Veneranda Toledo, Wayne Francis, Yvonne Wheeler and all of our other donors and volunteers.
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This year, MIA will serve 200 seniors onsite at Ward Villas Senior Complex and deliver 800 meals. Volunteers are needed to deliver Thanksgiving meals from 9:00am – 2:00pm
Ward Villas Senior Complex is located at 1177 West Adams Blvd. in Los Angeles, CA 90007
Follow Mothers In Action on Facebook and follow them on Twitter (@mothersinaction). For more information, contact (323) 290-0456 or email [email protected] or [email protected]
Tracy Mitchell contributed to this article.
