Photo By Ayumi Davis | Spc. Paul Mbella, U.S. Army Garrison-Fort Hood, unpacks stuffing mix boxes at the...... read more read more
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FORT HOOD, Texas — Frozen turkeys, bags of fresh apples and potatoes, canned cranberry sauce, stuffing mix, pie and more filled the seats and trunks of hundreds of Soldiers’ and families’ cars Nov. 20 during the Thanksgiving basket giveaway at Comanche Chapel.
Approximately 1,100 meals were distributed by chaplains, unit ministry teams and other Soldiers from around the installation, setting up into multiple lanes to ensure service to everyone who came and having people sign in with QR codes to ensure the food went to the right people.
“I do feel that today was a successful day, meaning the goal of the day was for the Religious Support Office and the unit ministry teams of Fort Hood to have an impact — a positive impact — on the families at Fort Hood,” said Chaplain (Maj.) Stephen Ekblad, officer in charge of the event, 504th Military Intelligence Brigade. “With the recent struggles from the government shutdown and just budgeting finances in general, for many families, being able to receive a Thanksgiving meal at no cost to them, in often cases, is a huge blessing.”
The food was provided by Central Texas Food Bank, who originally planned for 600 meals. However, after the lapse of appropriations, CTFB increased the number of meals to support more of the Fort Hood community.
“In all honesty, this could not have been done without the support of the Central Texas Food Bank and their team there,” Ekblad expressed. “They coordinated to gather all the food, to put it all together, to get it all set for us, to deliver it, so that all we had to do is say, ‘Here’s how many; here are the names.’”
The variety of food was fantastic, Ekblad said, noting the mix of both fresh, canned and boxed foods.
“Just an absolute great mix,” he said. “… For the general use, this was an amazing opportunity for many families for idealized homestyle Thanksgiving dinner.”
For the Soldiers who assisted in passing out the food, like Chaplain (Capt.) Ian Roberts, 720th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, the event was an opportunity to give back.
“I get to help out people that really are Soldiers that are in need, and to be able to give and spend a day in which I get to do that, it’s a lot of fun,” he said.
Pvt. Kwanye Jarvis, 2nd Chemical Battalion, 48th Chemical Brigade, agreed.
“I’m feeling pretty good, highly motivated, highly dedicated,” Jarvis said about the event. “We’re out here giving food, giving smiles — just giving back in general,” he said. “And I enjoy being here with my peers, having fun, sharing smiles, sharing moments and memories.”
Events like the Thanksgiving basket giveaway provide for people physically, but spiritually as well, Jarvis said.
“It’s a certain feeling that people get when they know that others care about them, and that others are doing stuff like this because not everyone has homes to go to for Thanksgiving or family,” he said. “So just the environment, the group that we have, the personal family that we have with our brothers and sisters in arms, I feel like that is the most important.”
For Eckblad, the event is an opportunity for the community to see what chaplains and unit ministry teams do.
“Oftentimes we’re thought of as the spiritual aspect, and if you want something to do with God or something like that, that’s what a chaplain is for,” he explained. “But we do so much more. We look at the resiliency of a formation, of a Soldier, of a family and the financial aspect, and being able to have food on the table for a holiday is an element of resiliency. And being able to demonstrate to these families and to the installation at large, that unit ministry teams care about that element really makes this critical.”
CTFB coordinates with RSO regularly for monthly Fresh Food for Families events. The next one will be 8:30-10 a.m. Dec. 4 at the Phantom Warrior Stadium parking lot. Recipients must enter from the traffic light at Tank Destroyer Boulevard and Comanche Avenue.
| Date Taken: | 11.26.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.26.2025 15:56 |
| Story ID: | 552515 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 8 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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