6 ms·

We had a food drive once, around Thanksgiving time. The most common item was canned cranberry sauce. A lot of people don't eat it, or really know what to do wi

We had a food drive once, around Thanksgiving time. The most common item was canned cranberry sauce. A lot of people don't eat it, or really know what to do with it. The other big failure was someone who donated 50 frozen turkeys. We had to give them away immediately, as we couldn't store them. Later on we had people tell us the turkeys didn't come out right, or they didn't have the right roasting pan or even oven to cook one in. You can't microwave a turkey or cook it on a hot plate.

javagram 7y ago
https://fox8.com/2018/11/21/but-can-you-actually-microwave-a-turkey-butterball-says-yes/ https://fox8.com/2018/11/21/but-can-you-actually-microwave-a... But yeah, I get your point! I do know someone whose charity gives away turkeys every year for thanksgiving dinner successfully (along with ingredients for the rest of a thanksgiving dinner) but it’s planned in advance and families come knowing what they are going to get.
- munk-a 7y ago
  I've been part of volunteer groups that have specifically been drafted to help cook and hand out these sort of holiday meat splurges - in Boston there was a good amount of warning and people would register their donations ahead of times so that we could make sure the turkeys get to shelters that can cook them and they didn't end up lying in a freezer because no one had the time to babysit them - or thrown out because a shelter over-estimated how much traffic they'd get. And, while a lot of time the safety of food that is consumed is questionable, shelters really don't want to hold onto meat beyond its shelf-life and end up giving everyone food poisoning.
- bluedino 7y ago
  Also funny are the employers who give out frozen turkeys they day before Thanksgiving...they won't thaw so you have to save them for Christmas.
  - graywh 7y ago
    my employer gives them out 2 weeks after Thanksgiving
    - giggles_giggles 7y ago
      The only thing any employer has ever given me on Thanksgiving was a shift on the help desk.
      - megablast 7y ago
        Wow, you didn't even get paid for it? Crazy.
- efa 7y ago
  Our church foodbank gives away all the fixings along with a coupon to get a turkey at the local grocery store.
  - DonHopkins 7y ago
    Thanks to the people who donated money to pay for the coupons.
stronglikedan 7y ago
> A lot of people don't eat it They will when they get hungry enough.
- babyloneleven 7y ago
  This is cruel. Someone that is donating should think about the welfare of the recipients. Otherwise it's just massaging one's own ego.
- dang 7y ago
  Please don't post flamebait here. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
DonHopkins 7y ago
At least they didn't drop them from a helicopter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf3mgmEdfwg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf3mgmEdfwg
avar 7y ago
> You can't microwave a turkey or cook it on a hot plate. Yes you can, you'd slice it up and cook it like bacon. Other parts you can use for stews etc. You can't cook the whole bird all at once, but if the alternative is no turkey at all I bet a lot of people were happier with it than without.
- s1artibartfast 7y ago
  > I bet a lot of people were happier with it than without. And a lot of Turkeys will end up in the dumpster as well.
s1artibartfast 7y ago
Based on the experience you shared, I think the may find the podcast linked below interesting. http://www.econtalk.org/canice-prendergast-on-how-prices-can-improve-a-food-fight-and-help-the-poor/ http://www.econtalk.org/canice-prendergast-on-how-prices-can... Here is the description: "If you have 250 million tons of food to give away every year to local food banks how should you do it? Canice Prendergast of the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how he and a team of economists created an artificial currency and a daily auction for the national food bank Feeding America so that local food banks could bid on the types of food that were the most valuable to them. Prendergast explains the results of the new system and the cultural and practical challenges of bringing prices, even artificial ones, to a world accustomed to giving things away."
ataturk 7y ago
I would categorize that under "poor people are also kinda stupid." My family volunteered at a local food bank quite a few times. At some point I threw up my hands. I wouldn't say I'm angry, but it's like dealing with little children. It seems to me that most of the people getting food at the "free grocery store" have money for cars, cigarettes, booze. Dare I say, drugs? They have money for all kinds of things somehow just not food. Know what? Put on your big boy and girl pants and get your priorities straightened out. And please stop depriving your kids due to your bad habits, that's just asshole behavior right there. My take away is that there are a few needy people in our community, people with mental issues or actual handicaps and some who are genuinely down on their luck. But then there is the army of childish bullshit artists from far and wide who just take advantage of generous Christians. It's...tiring. They're playing the heart strings of guilt-ridden citizens who believe it is their job to help everyone without passing judgement. That's a nice concept, but it's out of touch with reality. I get up every day at 5:40am to saunter off to work for 8-9 hrs each week day. Somehow, I'm the fool. See the problem? It used to be understood that in the process of trying to make the world a better place that you set an example and you held that high ground. The "cultural relativistic" approach is not working.

javagram 7y ago

https://fox8.com/2018/11/21/but-can-you-actually-microwave-a-turkey-butterball-says-yes/ https://fox8.com/2018/11/21/but-can-you-actually-microwave-a... But yeah, I get your point! I do know someone whose charity gives away turkeys every year for thanksgiving dinner successfully (along with ingredients for the rest of a thanksgiving dinner) but it’s planned in advance and families come knowing what they are going to get.

munk-a 7y ago
I've been part of volunteer groups that have specifically been drafted to help cook and hand out these sort of holiday meat splurges - in Boston there was a good amount of warning and people would register their donations ahead of times so that we could make sure the turkeys get to shelters that can cook them and they didn't end up lying in a freezer because no one had the time to babysit them - or thrown out because a shelter over-estimated how much traffic they'd get. And, while a lot of time the safety of food that is consumed is questionable, shelters really don't want to hold onto meat beyond its shelf-life and end up giving everyone food poisoning.
bluedino 7y ago
Also funny are the employers who give out frozen turkeys they day before Thanksgiving...they won't thaw so you have to save them for Christmas.
- graywh 7y ago
  my employer gives them out 2 weeks after Thanksgiving
  - giggles_giggles 7y ago
    The only thing any employer has ever given me on Thanksgiving was a shift on the help desk.
    - megablast 7y ago
      Wow, you didn't even get paid for it? Crazy.
efa 7y ago
Our church foodbank gives away all the fixings along with a coupon to get a turkey at the local grocery store.
- DonHopkins 7y ago
  Thanks to the people who donated money to pay for the coupons.

stronglikedan 7y ago

> A lot of people don't eat it They will when they get hungry enough.

babyloneleven 7y ago
This is cruel. Someone that is donating should think about the welfare of the recipients. Otherwise it's just massaging one's own ego.
dang 7y ago
Please don't post flamebait here. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

DonHopkins 7y ago

At least they didn't drop them from a helicopter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf3mgmEdfwg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf3mgmEdfwg

avar 7y ago

> You can't microwave a turkey or cook it on a hot plate. Yes you can, you'd slice it up and cook it like bacon. Other parts you can use for stews etc. You can't cook the whole bird all at once, but if the alternative is no turkey at all I bet a lot of people were happier with it than without.

s1artibartfast 7y ago
> I bet a lot of people were happier with it than without. And a lot of Turkeys will end up in the dumpster as well.

s1artibartfast 7y ago

Based on the experience you shared, I think the may find the podcast linked below interesting. http://www.econtalk.org/canice-prendergast-on-how-prices-can-improve-a-food-fight-and-help-the-poor/ http://www.econtalk.org/canice-prendergast-on-how-prices-can... Here is the description: "If you have 250 million tons of food to give away every year to local food banks how should you do it? Canice Prendergast of the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how he and a team of economists created an artificial currency and a daily auction for the national food bank Feeding America so that local food banks could bid on the types of food that were the most valuable to them. Prendergast explains the results of the new system and the cultural and practical challenges of bringing prices, even artificial ones, to a world accustomed to giving things away."

ataturk 7y ago

I would categorize that under "poor people are also kinda stupid." My family volunteered at a local food bank quite a few times. At some point I threw up my hands. I wouldn't say I'm angry, but it's like dealing with little children. It seems to me that most of the people getting food at the "free grocery store" have money for cars, cigarettes, booze. Dare I say, drugs? They have money for all kinds of things somehow just not food. Know what? Put on your big boy and girl pants and get your priorities straightened out. And please stop depriving your kids due to your bad habits, that's just asshole behavior right there. My take away is that there are a few needy people in our community, people with mental issues or actual handicaps and some who are genuinely down on their luck. But then there is the army of childish bullshit artists from far and wide who just take advantage of generous Christians. It's...tiring. They're playing the heart strings of guilt-ridden citizens who believe it is their job to help everyone without passing judgement. That's a nice concept, but it's out of touch with reality. I get up every day at 5:40am to saunter off to work for 8-9 hrs each week day. Somehow, I'm the fool. See the problem? It used to be understood that in the process of trying to make the world a better place that you set an example and you held that high ground. The "cultural relativistic" approach is not working.