Order up: Volunteers plan 15,000 Thanksgiving meals for Camp Fire victims

Mike Chapman | Redding

Hundreds of pounds of turkeys are thawing and volunteers are peeling sack after sack of potatoes so thousands of Camp Fire evacuees will be able to enjoy a free, hot Thanksgiving dinner.

The goal Thursday is to serve 15,000 meals in four shifts at three large Chico locations and in Red Cross shelters, according to the organizers of the event they're calling Thanksgiving Together.

The idea of serving a community-wide meal started gaining momentum more than a week ago.

"We've been working really hard to make this happen," city of Paradise mutual aid spokeswoman Briana Khan said. "We had an idea that it would be great to bring the community together so they can share in fellowship on Thanksgiving."

"It's been, honestly, an amazing collaborative effort," Khan added.

Thanksgiving Together is "a chance to bring together and bless the community through the unifying and healing power of food," organizers said.

The Thanksgiving hosts are World Central Kitchen, a disaster relief effort founded by celebrity chef José Andrés in 2010, the city of Paradise, Chico State University and its Associated Students, and the Sierra Nevada brewery.

"We have a large number of the staff who volunteered. They're peeling potatoes up in The Big Room," Sierra Nevada spokeswoman Robin Gregory said Monday. "Imagine you having to prep for 1,600 people."

Gregory said the brewery will serve its dinners in its Big Room, which most of the time is reserved for concerts and beer-release parties at its Chico location.

Gregory said the brewery wanted to help out because the Camp Fire has severely affected many of their friends, employees and their family members, and she said the people of Butte County have been very good to the business.

She said Sierra Nevada owner Ken Grossman is thinking of something special for one dish.

"Ken is the brainchild behind the mashed potatoes and gravy," but Gregory wasn't yet ready to spring what surprise he had in mind.

Meals also are planned at the Sutter Dining Hall and Bell Memorial Union Auditorium, both at Chico State University where classes have been suspended until Monday due to the fallout from the blaze. Seating times at Chico State and Sierra Nevada are 11 a.m. and 1, 3 and 5 p.m.

The brewery will serve turkey, pulled pork, stuffing, Ken's mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, garden salad and pumpkin pie. Beer isn't on the menu.

Here's what the brewery is prepping, by the numbers:

1,500 lbs of turkey

1,200 lbs of pulled pork

1,500 lbs of mashed potatoes

1,200 lbs of green beans

50 gallons of gravy

A partial list of companies making food donations to the brewery include Del Monte, Danielsen Co., Produce Express, Crystal Dairy, Mims Bakery, Upper Crust and Us Foods.

The beer-maker previously set up the Sierra Nevada Camp Fire Relief Fund at the Golden Valley Bank Community Foundation with an initial donation of $100,000 for long-term support.

Through last weekend, the brewery was giving free meals to fire victims, firefighters and other first responders.

The World Central Kitchen relief team already is in Chico with volunteers serving food to residents displaced by the wildfire. The nonprofit said Andrés will be joined by fellow celebrity chefs Guy Fieri and Tyler Florence of the Food Network.

"We believe everybody deserves a good meal, especially on Thanksgiving," the group says on its website, www.worldcentralkitchen.org.

WKC is accepting donations of $5 and more online to meet its meal goal.

For more, go to www.paradiserecovers.org/thanksgivingtogether. People 18 years and older can sign up to volunteer at http://bit.ly/ThanksgivingTogether.

Camp Fire: Vinny the pig cheers up firefighters Vinny, a small pig taken by his owner, Melissa Land, to cheer firefighters at the incident command center at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds in Chico.

Locations

Bell Memorial Union Auditorium at Chico State (West Second and Chestnut streets, Chico)

Sutter Dining Hall at Chico State (Warner Street and Legion Avenue, Chico)

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. (1075 East 20th Street, Chico)

Transportation and parking

Bell Memorial Union Auditorium parking is available at the parking structure and adjacent parking lot at West Second and Chestnut streets, the parking lot at West Second and Cherry streets, and the downtown area. Parking enforcement will not be in operation due to the holiday.

Sutter Dining Hall parking is available along Legion Avenue and in the University Stadium parking lot at Warner Street and Stadium Way. Parking enforcement will not be in operation due to the holiday.

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. parking is available in the brewery parking lots facing 20th Street.

The Butte County B-Line is offering free rides through the month of November. Please go to http://www.blinetransit.com/index.html for bus stop and route information.