I remember when I first arrived here at Fun 107 in 1995.  It was my first Thanksgiving in New Bedford.  The business manager, Yvette Gracie, had organized a program that delivered baskets to struggling families here on the Southcoast.  The baskets were complete with a turkey, stuffing, gravy, vegetables, milk, cranberry sauce...basically everything you'd need to have a traditional American Thanksgiving dinner.  She encouraged me to help deliver the baskets on the Tuesday afternoon before Thanksgiving.  What I experienced was eye opening to the 21 year old me.  I met families and people within shouting distance of Fun 107 that were battling poverty and hunger.  Their circumstances varied tremendously, but the gratitude (mixed with a dash of relief and private humility) shown by each family was consistent.

Eventually, for various reasons, we had to move away from the program.  It bothered me because, selfishly, the day we'd deliver those Thanksgiving baskets meant the start of the holiday season for me.  It made me feel good to be making such a difference in the lives of some good people right here in my community.

I was excited to learn about a very similar program that was launched a few years ago by the United Way of Greater New Bedford.  It is called the Hunger Heroes project, where food is collected to fill baskets full of Thanksgiving joy.  When we heard about it here at Fun 107, we needed to be a part of it.  That is why we have retooled Cans Across The Park and rebranded it to Operation Food Drop.  We're still at Buttonwood Park, we're still collecting your generous food donations, but now we have a very tangible goal.  And this year, our goal is lofty.  We are aiming to distribute 1,000 Thanksgiving baskets to local families in need.  Please remember Operation Food Drop.  We'll be at Buttonwood Park on Friday from 10am-2pm.  This could be the start of your holiday spirit of giving.

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