St. Mary's Food Bank collecting Thanksgiving turkey, food donations

PHOENIX — Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and organizations around the Valley are once again in need of turkeys to help families in need.

This Saturday, Nov, 20, St. Mary's Food Bank will host its yearly "Super Saturday Turkey Drive" with the hope of collecting 10,000 turkeys in one day.

“This year the need is like no other that we’ve seen before, people are really struggling,” said Lisa Notaro, the chief development and community relations office at St. Mary's.

“We want to make sure that everybody can have a traditional Thanksgiving meal with a turkey stuffing and all the trimmings," she said, noting that they have an overall goal of helping 20,000 people throughout the state, including in the Valley and within the Navajo Nation.

Jerry Brown, a spokesperson for St. Mary's Food Bank, says so far they've received a few thousand turkeys — far short of their goal. They're still hoping to get at least 5,500 more turkeys.

“It’s a concerning number that we are behind," said Brown. "What gives us hope is that the people of Phoenix will always come through for us."

Along with a lack of turkeys, the food bank is struggling to get other necessities because of supply chain issues.

"We've had a little problem getting canned fruit, canned vegetables," Brown said. “We’ve been asking people to just use regular boxes when they collect food for their food drives because we don’t have enough to go out."

Brown says the number of people coming to the food bank has gone up by about 15% in just the past six weeks, which is why every donation makes a difference.

“When gas prices go up, when rent prices go up, when food prices go up, those families on the edge turn to the food bank for relief," he said.

You can drop off turkeys and non-perishable items during the "Super Saturday Turkey Drive" event at St. Mary's Food Bank locations in Phoenix and Surprise and Safeway/Albertsons locations across the Valley from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

If you can't make it out on Saturday, you can donate food at St. Mary's Food Bank from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Saturday, now until Nov. 24.

St. Mary's Food Bank:

• St. Mary’s Food Bank Del Webb: 2831 N 31^st Ave, Phoenix, 85009
• Surprise St. Mary’s Food Bank: 13050 W Elm St., Surprise, 85378
  

Albertsons locations (Super Saturday):

• 5040 W Cactus Rd, Glendale, AZ 85304 (51^stAve and Cactus Rd)
• 11475 E Via Linda, Scottsdale, AZ 85259 (Via Linda and FLW Blvd)
• 6965 N Hayden Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85250 (Indian Bend Rd and Hayden Rd)
• 8950 W Bell Rd, Peoria, AZ 85382 (91^stAve and Bell Rd)
• 8240 W Deer Valley Rd, Peoria, AZ 85382 (83^rdAve and Deer Valley Rd)
• 21001 N Tatum Blvd, Phoenix, AZ 85050 (Tatum Blvd and Deer Valley Rd)
• 12970 W Indian School Rd, Litchfield Park, AZ 85340 (Indian School Rd and Dysart Rd)

Safeway locations (Super Saturday):

• 520 W Osborn Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85013 (7^thAve and Osborn Rd)
• 810 E Glendale Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85020 (7^th St and Glendale Ave)
• 3800 W Happy Valley Rd, Glendale, AZ 85310 (39^th Dr and Happy Valley Rd)
• 14696 N Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd, Scottsdale, AZ 85260 (FLW Blvd and Raintree Dr)
• 4747 E Elliot Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85044 (48^thSt and Elliot Rd)
• 4005 E Chandler Blvd, Phoenix, AZ 85044 (40^thSt and Chandler Blvd)
• 20901 N Pima Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85255 (Pima Rd and Thompson Peak Pkwy)
• 13440 N 7th St, Phoenix, AZ 85022 (7^thSt and Thunderbird Rd)
• 10773 N Scottsdale Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85254 (Scottsdale Rd and Shea Blvd)
• 3132 E Camelback Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85016 (32^ndSt and Camelback Rd)
• 13503 Camino del Sol, Sun City West, AZ 85375 (Camino del Sol and RH Johnson Blvd)
• 4750 E Indian School Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85018 (Indian School Rd and Arcadia Dr)
• 20901 N Pima Rd, Scottsdale AZ 85255
• 3800 W Happy Valley Rd, Glendale AZ 85310

Phoenix Police Department's Desert Horizon Precinct:

The Phoenix Police Department's Desert Horizon Precinct began collecting turkeys last week as part of its own turkey drive to benefit St. Mary's.

“I know the need is going to be great. Just speaking with St. Mary’s Food Bank, they’re anticipating an increase in families that are going to need support, so that’s why we wanted to jump in with them to fill that gap and meet our community's need,” said Phoenix police commander Brian Issitt.

“The holiday always holds a special place in people's hearts and having the ability to come alongside a family in need and come alongside our community is exactly why we do this job,” commander Issitt said.

Last year, the precinct had 650 turkeys donated. This year, the goal has been increased to 1,000 turkeys. They will be accepting turkeys through Nov. 22 at the precinct located at 16030 N. 56th St., Scottsdale, AZ 85254.

For more details on how to help provide meals to those in need, click here. You can also donate online.