Thanksgiving came early for Neighbor to Neighbor.
On Wednesday, 400 turkeys were delivered to the food pantry as a donation from Saracen Casino Resort, although high praise also went to Ben E. Keith Foods of Little Rock for finding the birds.
Carlton Saffa, chief market officer at the casino, said it was "a joy" to be able to give the turkeys to the food pantry.
"We're not even to Halloween, but Ben E. Keith found the supply so we wanted to do this now," Saffa said. "This is the kind of thing that just needs to be done. It's the kind of thing that businesses should be doing without being asked."
At 11 a.m., the food distributor's 18-wheeler backed into Neighbor to Neighbor's parking lot, and James McCann, who works for the food distributor, started dollying case after case of frozen turkeys down a ramp and into the agency's walk-in freezer.
Pat Tate, executive director of Neighbor to Neighbor, said the birds would be handed out to the agency's clients starting Nov. 1, and that if there were any turkeys left, they would be given out at Christmas.
"Our clients will be so grateful that they can have a traditional holiday meal with their families," Tate said. "I want to thank Saracen Casino and Carlton Saffa for their amazing generosity and also to Ben E. Keith Foods for locating and delivering the turkeys."
Finding hundreds of turkeys is no easy feat at the moment, considering there is a nationwide shortage.
Rusty Mathis, general manager with the food distributor, said the problem across the country is a lack of labor to process the turkeys, although his company has a solid supply line established at the moment.
"We were able to buy ahead of time, and we've got a decent supply, but it's going to be tight," Mathis said. "When Carlton called me, I said we can do this -- Saracen is such a great partner -- but we have to do it now."
Mathis was joined at Neighbor to Neighbor by Yvette Parker, director of public relations and marketing at Ben E. Keith Foods.
As Tate was thanking Saffa, he in turn thanked his employer.
"I appreciate the fact that Saracen Casino and the Quapaw Nation allow us to support the community like this," Saffa said. "We appreciate the fact that we can help families in this way. Many of these people would gladly switch places and be in a position to give away something like this instead of needing to receive it."
Saffa also thanked Ben E. Keith Foods for its generosity.
The delivery of holiday turkeys was not lost on two Neighbor to Neighbor's clients who were sitting at the front of the building waiting for the pantry's daily lunch. Both men said they appreciated the donation and were looking forward to receiving a turkey this year.
"This means a lot," said Rubin Rattler. "Some people are able to get food and others aren't, so seeing someone give food away to help people is really nice."
"It's a blessing for them to come and make this generous gesture," said Milton Cowin. "For them to make it possible for Neighbor to Neighbor to give someone a turkey at Thanksgiving, it has significance."
Asked if he would be preparing the turkey himself, Cowin said he would likely give it to someone else.
"I will gladly receive it," he said, "but I will probably give it away and bless somebody else. I used to be married, but my wife died of breast cancer so it's just me. I'll find someone I think might need it."