The Amendola Family Student Cupboard is giving away free turkey to students ahead of Thanksgiving.
“We wanted to see if we can help out more students,” said Jose Rivas, the CalFresh outreach coordinator for the Student Cupboard. “This gesture is something that we do every year.”
The special giveaway began when the Amendola family and Table Mountain Casino contributed funds to purchase turkeys for Fresno State students, according to Rivas.
Michal Ballin, the Student Cupboard coordinator, decided to give out 500 turkeys this year instead of the usual 250 turkeys in previous years.
Turkeys are one of the hottest commodities offered by the Student Cupboard. Students call ahead in October, and Rivas said word of mouth draws in students to get their own turkey.
“I think it’s that they’re doing it especially because turkey is really expensive nowadays,” said Hannah Lopez, a freshman pre-psychology major. “I know that a lot of students that come to Fresno State are low-income, I know I am, and it can be hard to get access to stuff like that.”
The turkeys were purchased from one of the Student Cupboard’s local vendors, Grocery Outlet at Clovis, according to Rivas. Other organizations, such as Associated Students, Inc., also made donations to the Student Cupboard.
Students can get a turkey through the Student Cupboard’s QR code at its on-campus location or when it tables. Students who sign up are given a side of pre-packaged dinner rolls, corn, mashed potatoes or macaroni and cheese with the turkey.
The Student Cupboard will stay open for Thanksgiving break on Monday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. It will be closed on Thursday and Friday.
“I think that’s really good for people who are on campus, for people who are struggling, I feel like that’s way better, they can just come here and get food, I think that’s really helpful,” said Marisa Rincon, a freshman biology major.
Turkeys that are unclaimed by this week will be given out to students through a QR code on a first-come, first-served basis starting Monday.
