Two nights ago, Richard LeGuin was shivering under a Houston bridge. On Thanksgiving Day, he was safe and sound inside the George R. Brown Convention Center.

“Whole lot better in here,” LeGuin quipped between bites of turkey at the Big Super Feast, one of the largest outpourings of support to low-income residents in the Gulf Coast area.

Officials who organized the 38th annual feast said they expect between 20,000 and 25,000 to eat a meal at the convention center on Thanksgiving Day. The event has grown to become a one-stop place for numerous outreach services, notably clothing, medical care, legal services, and even a haircut.

“It’s helpful for the time being,” said Henry Mack, 55, a native Houstonian currently living on the streets.

Because access to laundry is limited, the homeless can go through clothing in about a week or two before it becomes too soiled, Mack said. Local shelters and churches then replace their garments.

Other services at the Super Feast might only last a day or two, or just offer a brief respite from tough times.

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Joaquin Herrera, owner of Goodfellas Fade Shop in Clear Lake, brought roughly a dozen members of his shop to Houston to chip in, offering more than just a little off the top.

“We wanted to bring more than a haircut,” Herrera said, as he prepared to leave a clean razor line across a beard. “We’d like to bring some pampering.”

Charles Ford, 60, said he appreciated the trim, which he said might be his first haircut by a trained barber in two years, since he lost his job with an oilwell repair company. Lately, his sister has cut his hair.

“You do what you need to do to make ends meet,” Ford said. “You do without. Your scrape by. You accept help. I’m not too proud. I’m not looking for much, either.”

Hundreds of volunteers scoured the convention center floor, carrying trays, cleaning floors and offering to help.

“I’m so glad to live in a city that respects each other for our differences…,” said Houston Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, “but who also come together as one big family.”