WASHINGTON — Thanksgiving is less than a week away.
While many people may have already started shopping for meals with loved ones, there are families across the DMV who are less fortunate.
Project Giveback is hoping to offer some relief this year despite having to pivot due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“There are some people that are struggling,” Ransom Miller III said. “We want to meet that need.”
Miller is the chairman of Project Giveback, a non-profit organization that works with professionals and corporate firms to help them give back to the communities where they work.
“A long time ago we realized there are a lot of blessings in this area – a lot of blessed people, but there’s also a lot of need,” he said.
The organization does a lot in the community but is most known for its annual Thanksgiving food distributions.
“The Thanksgiving food distribution started out with a few people. The last few years, we’ve had over 700 people to come at dawn to come to the armory,” Miller told WUSA9.
Miller has had to turn many volunteers away and find a new location because of coronavirus restrictions and concerns.
Instead, this year, volunteers are spread out around eight private locations in D.C. and Maryland.
People donating their time for a good cause will put together and deliver food boxes to more than 2,700 families that have already been identified.
“This year, with all the stuff going on, maybe they can host their immediate family. They don’t have to worry about that. They don’t have to worry about what they’re going to do for Thanksgiving,” Miller said. “You can sit down and have a meal as opposed to not.”
One of the challenges of not having their large event at the D.C. Armory in 2020 is that people used to show up to volunteer and give monetary donations.
That money would typically help them meet their financial goals for the year.
Project Giveback is asking people to donate online to help them continue making an impact in the community.