Over the past 10 years, the Central Valley Association of Realtors has donated $1.5 million to worthwhile causes in San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties.
That’s according to CEO Byron Bogaard.
On Wednesday, he and his CVAR group were at Coldwell Banker Crossroads Real Estate to give $1,750 to Realtors and affiliates of the Manteca Council. The money made possible from the Sept. 26 golf tournament at Manteca Park will benefit the Turkeys R Us drive to feed families during the holiday season.
The goal is to make sure struggling families in Manteca, Ripon and Lathrop have a traditional Thanksgiving with a turkey meal. With the Realtors’ donation, the community-based Turkeys R Us has raised $11,496 as of Wednesday plus 1,720 actual turkeys. That is enough to provide turkeys to 2,486 families.
Last-minute requests for turkeys from the 30 food closets serving the three communities have upped the number of struggling families requesting help to 2,900. The requests include families that usually try to avoid relying on food closets but due to budgets being stretched thin and the high cost of a turkey meal simply can’t afford to engage in the American tradition of a turkey Thanksgiving meal.
In order to make sure no one in Ripon, Manteca, or Lathrop goes without, Turkeys R Us needs to come up with donations for an additional 414 turkeys by Friday in order to get them distributed in time for Thanksgiving.
The CVAR donation will help in the 14th annual turkey drive goal of “giving to those in need during the holidays.”
Coldwell Banker Crossroads Real Estate at 319 N. Main St., Manteca, is one of several drop-off locations for such donations. Other places include Coldwell Banker Crossroads-Lathrop, 15810 S. Harlan Road, Ste. C, and Second Harvest Food Bank, 704 E. Industrial Park Drive, Manteca.
Last year, Manteca came together as a community to raise $23,290, providing holiday meals for over 3,000 families.
All Turkeys R Us donations go directly to the Second Harvest Food Bank.
For more information, call Second Harvest at 209-239-2091 or click on to www.localfoodbank.org.
Effort needs 414 turkeys by Friday to meet need