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Donations needed for Thanksgiving baskets

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Special to Long Beach Breeze

Nineteen years ago in the fall of 2006, three people, Jason Lindholm, Karen Livengood and Rebekah Woodcock, sat down in the back of Lindholm’s office, brainstorming ways to give back to the community.

They were inspired by the outpouring of help from church groups all across the country that came to help the Coast after Hurricane Katrina.

“We felt it was our turn to pay it forward, though we had no idea how to do a food drive or who it would even go to,” said Lindholm. They were eventually assisted by the Long Beach School District to help find families in need. Several years later, the food drive was merged into the Rotary Club of Long Beach and has since turned into one of its biggest projects.

Each year for the last nineteen years, a full Thanksgiving basket and a turkey has been provided to thirty to fifty local families, with any leftover food donations going to the Long Beach Food Pantry.

The Rotary Club of Long Beach is currently seeking food and monetary donations. They are looking for Thanksgiving-specific food items, including mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, deserts, canned veggies, stuffing and gravy. Grocery store gift cards, which are used to buy each family a turkey, are their biggest need each year.

Those who would like to help out may drop off food at Lindholm Wealth Management at 19017 Pineville Road in Long Beach. The club is also taking monetary donations via Paypal @LBMSRotary.

For more information, contact Lindholm at 228-731-3000.