A small gesture means so much to Latonya Cummings.
“It’s greatly appreciated. I work hard. I’m a single parent, and sometimes, you know, even though the holidays are coming up, you want to do more, but just because it’s holidays, don’t mean the rent man don’t want his money,” Cummings said.
Cummings’ family is just one of the dozens who got a Thanksgiving surprise.
“It tugs at your heart, and it’s just a great feeling,” said Chief Carl Dabadie of the Baton Rouge Police Department.
The Baton Rouge Police Department’s annual Thanksgiving Adopt-a-Family event is where officers collect money to help feed as many families as they can.
So they came together and picked up their turkeys from Bayou Cafe and headed out all around Baton Rouge.
“It started actually with the police department, and this year we have national greek organizations in participation,” said Sgt. Myron Daniels.
Organizations including the Xi Nu Lambda chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
“We enjoy helping out for them, and we enjoy being there. So it’s just gives us a good feeling to be able to help those who need to be helped,” said Aaron Phipps, a member of the fraternity.
“I get to watch the community come together, even with something as simple as delivering a meal to a family in need,” Daniels said.
“It’s a blessing to have some kind of help every once in a while,” Cummings said. “It’s a good thing ya’ll are doing it, and I really, really appreciate ya’ll.”
This year, the department collected $4,000 in donations which helped 68 families.