MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - Turkey is the focal point of most Thanksgiving dinners, but the Mid-South Food Bank is running short on the birds. Employees are hoping to get thousands more before Thanksgiving.
"The need is still great," said Estella Mayhue-Greer, president and CEO of the Mid-South Food Bank. "As fast as we get the food in, it's going out to our agencies."
And what's flying off shelves the fastest? With Thanksgiving less than a week away, it's the turkeys.
"We've gotten about 3,000 in total," Mayhue-Greer told abc24.com.
Even with such generosity, the Mid-South Food Bank still needs 2,000 turkeys to reach this year's goal of collecting 5,000.
"The need has doubled. We want to make sure every family has a decent holiday," Mayhue-Greer told abc24.com. "Households that used to have two incomes are now down to one. They have to adjust, and often food gets cut back."
Food is also more expensive this year, but Mayhue-Greer said many people don't qualify for government help.
"They don't get food stamps or anything like that, so these are people who are relying on our partner agencies for food," said Mayhue-Greer.
That's why she said it's so important they get those additional turkeys.
"Everything we have in our inventory is spoken for. It's still in the freezer, but our agencies are coming in to pick up at the beginning of next week. We need more turkeys. Just anything. The fixings for a holiday meal, anything that people will bring. The cranberry sauce. We will greatly appreciate it," Mayhue-Greer told abc24.com.
You can bring donations to the Mid-South Food Bank every day until 5 p.m. It's located at 239 South Dudley Street in Memphis. The food bank feeds 31 counties in Mississippi, Tennessee and Arkansas.
