IN MEMORY OF
JON JENKINS
For nearly a decade, Jon Jenkins and Taco Sisters were at the heart of our Community Thanksgiving.
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Jon was the kind of person who started smoking turkeys in August, not because anyone asked him to, but because he wanted to make sure everything was just right when Thanksgiving Day arrived. What began with turkey grease, bones, and vacuum-sealed bags grew into a beautiful friendship and an extraordinary commitment to serving our community.
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In his final year with us, Jon smoked more than 375 turkeys, helping us provide Thanksgiving meals to more than 5,000 people.
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His contribution was measured in far more than turkeys. It was measured in early mornings, countless hours, laughter, friendship, and the thousands of people who were fed because he chose to show up year after year.
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We recently lost our dear friend, but his place at our Thanksgiving table will remain.
Beginning in 2026, our annual Community Thanksgiving has a new name and a new identity:
The Williams Jenkins Community Thanksgiving
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Our redesigned logo brings the Williams and Jenkins names together as a permanent tribute to the friendship, service and shared belief that helped this initiative grow.
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For 14 years, Community Thanksgiving has brought people together around one simple idea: when we feed our neighbors, we strengthen our community. As we begin this next chapter, we carry Jon's spirit forward in every turkey prepared, every meal packed, every volunteer who shows up and every neighbor we serve.
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His name is now part of ours. His legacy will always have a place at the table.
4,000 +
Meals Provided
Throughout Acadiana
Years of
Community Impact
14
100%
FREE for
Neighbors to Attend
Be Part of Something Bigger
Help us serve 4,000+ meals this Thanksgiving
A Community Effort
Our Mission
The mission of Community Thanksgiving, organized by Love of People, is simple yet powerful: to connect local businesses with the communities they serve. We strive to identify areas in our community that are most in need and, by working together, utilize our most valuable resource - our culture - to uplift and strengthen our entire community.
This year, with the generous support of Anchor Partnerships, our aspirations have grown exponentially. We aim to serve over 4,000 meals across the Acadiana area. Our target locations include Opelousas, Sunset, Lafayette, Youngsville, and New Iberia.
Our goal is to have all meals delivered to their designated sites by noon on Thanksgiving Day, allowing guests to either pick up their dinners or enjoy a meal in the company of others in a safe and welcoming environment.
THREE WAYS YOU CAN HELP THIS THANKSGIVING
DONATE
A TURKEY
BECOME
A SPONSOR
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITIES
Put Thanksgiving on the table.
A $25 gift provides one whole turkey for this year's feast.
Join the businesses and organizations helping provide the food, supplies and resources needed to serve thousands of our Acadiana neighbors.
Bring your family, friends, coworkers or organization and help us prepare and distribute more than 4,000 Thanksgiving meals.
Good Food
Stronger Community
Stronger Community
14 YEARS
AROUND THE TABLE
Fourteen years ago, John Williams stood in his own kitchen and cooked every turkey himself. With a small circle of friends and family, 150 Thanksgiving meals were prepared and delivered to neighbors who otherwise may have spent the holiday without a meal or a place to gather. What began around one kitchen has grown into a community tradition serving more than 4,000 meals across Acadiana.
Over the years, businesses, organizations, families, and thousands of volunteers have joined the table, each helping carry the mission a little farther.
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In 2026, Community Thanksgiving begins its next chapter as the Williams Jenkins Community Thanksgiving, honoring Jon Jenkins's legacy, whose extraordinary support helped this tradition grow.
His name now lives alongside the mission he believed in: GOOD FOOD → STRONGER COMMUNITY
This Is What Community Looks Like.
Fourteen years. Thousands of meals. Countless volunteers. One very big table.
Take a look behind the scenes at the people, partnerships and organized chaos that make Community Thanksgiving happen.
