photo by: Contributed

Volunteers help prepare meals for the 2024 LINK Thanksgiving dinner.

The Homeless Resource Center will host LINK’s annual dinner on Thanksgiving Day.

LINK – short for Lawrence Interdenominational Nutrition Kitchen – became a program of HRC in April of this year, and the HRC will continue the tradition of the free community meal for anyone who wishes to partake. LINK is a community meal program that started in Lawrence in 1985.

This year’s meal will be at 1 p.m. on Nov. 26 at the LINK meal site in the lower level of First Christian Church at 10th and Kentucky streets. Meals will also be delivered to homes across Lawrence that day.

“LINK has been feeding this community for more than 40 years, and Thanksgiving is one of the clearest pictures of what that looks like,” said Brett Hartford, executive director of HRC. “Our job now is to carry that tradition forward with the same care the LINK volunteers have always brought to it. We need our neighbors to help make that happen.”

Volunteers can start signing up on Nov. 9 at www.hrclawrence.org. All volunteers must sign up in advance so each shift can be planned well. Walk-up volunteers cannot be placed on the day of the event.

Volunteer Shifts

• Wednesday, Nov. 25, 3 to 6 p.m. at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 6001 Bob Billings Parkway: receive donated food and begin assembling meals for home delivery.

• Thursday, Nov. 26, 10 a.m. to noon at Corpus Christi: pack home-delivered meals and clean up the prep area.

• Thursday, Nov. 26, 11:15 a.m. at Corpus Christi: deliver meals.

• Thursday, Nov. 26, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the LINK meal site: set up, serve and clean up.

Volunteer questions can be directed to Deb Engstrom at engstromdeb5550@gmail.com or785-727-3790 (weekdays after 5 p.m.).

Home Deliveries

Requests for home-delivered meals must be made through a service-providing agency. Agencies will submit their lists on Monday, Nov. 23.

About the Homeless Resource Center

The Homeless Resource Center is a Lawrence nonprofit day center serving people experiencing homelessness. Founded in 2018, HRC joined with the Coalition for Homeless Concerns in 2019 and integrated LINK in 2026. HRC receives no city or county funding and relies entirely on community support. Learn more at www.hrclawrence.org.