“Have you had the chance to eat today?”

This simple question was asked by Richard Bagdonas, the founder of Operation Turkey, to a homeless gentleman in a wheelchair on a chilly Thanksgiving back in 2000. This interaction in Austin, Texas marked the beginning of Operation Turkey, which has since developed into a nonprofit that delivers more than 30,000 meals to the less fortunate in 10 cities and five states. This year, some members of the Austin-based team at Foster & Houston came together to support Operation Turkey and help reach their goal of supplying 40,000 warm meals to those in need this Thanksgiving.

A Lot to Gobble

It takes a lot of volunteers and even more food to make Operation Turkey successful. Here’s a look at the Thanksgiving treats by the numbers:

• Over 7200 pounds of turkey are cooked (that’s 500+ turkeys, y’all!)
• A little over 8,000 water bottles have been collected
• About 2,000 pounds of potatoes are mashed
• More than 270 pies are sliced
• There are 88 meals plated per minute by volunteers on Thanksgiving morning

Get Involved

Operation Turkey is a volunteer opportunity for all ages. On Thanksgiving morning, adults help organize, plate, and deliver meals while children are asked to decorate takeout boxes with hand turkeys and write wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving. If Operation Turkey hasn’t made it to your city, there are still ways to fundraise, donate, and get involved. For more on this cause, visit operationturkey.com.