When the Pismo Beach Police Officers Association hosted its first free community Thanksgiving dinner 25 years ago, the group didn’t know if anyone would show up.

More than 300 dinners were served that first year, and this year, organizers may see the largest crowd yet.

“We are prepared to serve the 3,000 meals that we served last year ... and I wouldn’t be surprised if for the first time we run out of food,” said Sherry Lange, Pismo Beach police records technician and 25-year dinner volunteer.

Lange and others involved with the event believe more people will come to this year’s dinner than in past years because of the sluggish economy and the increasingly high unemployment rate.

However, the Police Officers Association is prepared and wants the community to know the dinner is open to anyone who needs a hot meal and a little company for a few hours, no questions asked.

“This dinner is open to anyone; there’s no judgment,” said retired Pismo Police Sgt. David Gescheider, who started the dinner to fill a need in the South County, where a free holiday meal was not offered.

Gescheider will be in the serving line this year.

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“We open the doors and ask you to have dinner on the Pismo Beach Police Department. If you think you want to come, please do,” he added.

“People can stay all day if they want.”

This year’s Thanksgiving dinner will be served from 1 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Pismo Beach Veterans Memorial Building, 780 Bello St.

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Organizing a dinner where at least 3,000 meals are cooked over two days and served in one day is no easy feat, and couldn’t be possible without the help of many volunteers. About 150 people assist every year.

Volunteers cook approximately 2,300 pounds of turkey at Marie Callender’s in Pismo Beach for the dinner, along with mounds of potatoes and fresh broccoli, which are both prepared at the memorial building.

They also serve meals, complete with all the traditional Thanksgiving dinner side dishes, at the memorial building for six hours and deliver dinners to the homebound. They also help set up the event, bus tables and clean up when it’s all over.

“The people who put the dinner on get it done,” Gescheider said. “It’s totally a community thing. (The volunteers) are the people that make this dinner click. We have the best workers that show up.”

San Luis Obispo resident Dan Sallia has volunteered

at the dinner for 14 years. When he left the area in

the late 1990s for three years, the first thing he did when he returned was to contact the dinner’s volunteer coordinator.

“Boy, did I miss it,” Sallia said about the years he couldn’t serve. “This is the one day where you get to see that giving matters. This is about giving to others. It’s so tangible.”

Feeding those who need a hot meal or friendly smile during the often-lonely holiday season is what keeps Sallia and others coming back to help.

“Giving back, that’s what it is all about,” Sallia said. “For some people, this is the only fresh-cooked meal they’ll get all month. Unless I have a medical issue, I will be there (volunteering).”

The association’s dinner is still the only free community Thanksgiving dinner offered in the Five Cities.

“We are the blessing for the South County on that one day,” Sallia said. “People don’t have to come in and tell their story. We just open the doors and welcome them in. This is the day where we are giving back to the community.”

November 23, 2008