Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, St. Matthews partner to provide Thanksgiving meals to 200 Veterans
Two hundred Florida Veterans and their families will be able to enjoy a Thanksgiving turkey with all the trimmings this year, thanks to the generosity of St. Matthews House, a Florida-based nonprofit who has been supporting residents in south Florida for 30 years.
“This will be our seventh year of partnering with St. Matthews House for the turkey distribution,” said Lee County Healthcare Center’s HUD-VASH Senior Social Worker Jennifer Burnham. “It’s a great relationship that the VA has with St. Matthews House.”
The partnership with St. Matthews House started with Burnham and her family and blossomed into a relationship with Bay Pines VA, who provides health care and support to nearly 110,000 Veterans, across 10 counties in southwest Florida.
“My family has been volunteering with St. Matthew’s House on Thanksgiving Day, giving out hot meals for the homeless, for several years,” Burnham said. “Volunteering helped me develop a relationship with some of the staff. St. Matthews House has a wonderful history of serving those in need, and they were very excited to help Veterans.”
Donations were brought from St. Matthews House to the Lee County Healthcare Center where employees and volunteers were standing by to load multiple vehicles for the annual deliveries.
U.S. Marine Corps Veteran Clifton Wakefield was excited to be a recipient of this year’s donation and offered his thanks and appreciation for the ongoing support he has received.
“I have the best social worker on the planet,” said Wakefield. “This means that my family and I can eat and have leftovers, and you know, the HUD-VASH program helps Veterans in need.”
Burnham was equally excited for the Wakefield family and others who will have the opportunity to share a meal together this year.
“This is a great event, and it’s is definitely my favorite day of the year,” said Burnham. “I get to deliver the turkey dinners to Veterans that might not be able to afford this meal on their own.”
The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System HUD-VASH program supports Veterans year round. To learn more about their mission, to volunteer, or raise awareness about a Veteran or family in need, please visit: https://www.va.gov/bay-pines-health-care/health-services/homeless-veteran-care/