Not everyone is fortunate enough to be able to spend this Thanksgiving with loved ones or afford a traditional holiday meal.

That’s where churches like Grace Presbyterian come in.

Grace is holding its second annual free Thanksgiving meal on Thursday.

The community is welcome to join in a traditional feast, complete with turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, green beans, pies and other desserts. 

“We believe that everybody ought to have the opportunity to have a Thanksgiving meal,” said Mark Weaver, pastor.

“This year especially, the needs of people are so evident with the economy being the way it is,” Weaver said.

About 20 volunteers from the church will cook and serve the meal.

“There are no strings attached, we just want to open our doors to people who need to have a good Thanksgiving meal,” Weaver said.

Grace took on the ministry last year, when Weaver realized there was a void in Dawson County.

“We looked around the community and saw that no one was offering this sort of outreach locally, so we stepped up to the plate,” Weaver said. “We wanted to fill this need.”

According to Weaver, Grace is motivated by serving local residents.

“We want to be a church for our community, and this is just one way we are fleshing that out,” he said.

The meal is set for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday at the church, Hwys. 9 and 53 in Dawsonville.

For more information, contact (706) 216-7747.