Thanksgiving for many Hastings residents kicks off with Gobble Gait in the morning and then the rush of getting ready for family stuff later in the day. Sadly, for some, Thanksgiving is another day of wondering where they are going to get a meal from. This year, Hometown Ace Hardware in the Westview Mall wanted to be part of both, helping give to Gobble Gait and helping feed people in need.

Ace purchased 60 pizzas from Duff’s Meats 2 in Hastings and had volunteers on hand to help distribute both frozen and cooked pizzas to folks who stopped by for the event. People who could do so were encouraged to bring a donation to Hastings Family Service and those who needed the help with the free meal were given the pizzas, no questions asked.

This was the first year that Ace held this event, so they were not sure what to expect. With all new things, there are learning opportunities to make things work more efficiently, but they hope to do this each Thanksgiving morning going forward.