San Clemente Opens its Kitchens and Hearts for Thanksgiving Feast

So many people wanted to serve their less fortunate neighbors dinner, organizers of a Thanksgiving meal in San Clemente had to turn away volunteers.

Hundreds of San Clemente residents hauled their best dishes into the Community Center kitchen Wednesday night for volunteers from the Knights of Columbus and others to carve, scoop and slice for about 500 hungry diners.

“I believe that there are angels here tonight disguised as ordinary people," said Mary Gray Perdue of Family Assistance Ministries , the organizer of the annual dinner. Volunteers cooked turkeys, pies or their own specialty dishes, meaning the food for the whole evening was almost entirely prepared and delivered by individual San Clemente families.

"Even two weeks ago, the volunteer positions were all filled up," Perdue said. "There were probably at least 300 people who donated food. They were even calling me this morning asking what they could do to help.”