On Thanksgiving week, volunteers from across Cumberland County will gather at the Fayetteville Chapter 82nd Airborne Division Association to turn smoked turkeys and donated sides into something more than a holiday meal.
Operation Turkey Fayetteville is a local branch of the national nonprofit Operation Turkey. It’s a community promise that neighbors in need are not forgotten.
This year’s ambitious goal is to serve 10,000 meals to people who are homeless or struggling across Cumberland County and surrounding communities. The effort is led locally by volunteers, including community organizer Kimberly Fleming and state leader Venassia Gunter. Efforts are community-driven and entirely by unpaid help.
“We are 100 percent volunteer-run,” Gunter said in a recent announcement. “Every plate that goes out the door is a direct reflection of this community’s generosity and willingness to show up for one another.”
A virtual volunteer orientation on Nov. 23 from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. will walk new and returning helpers through food-safety rules, site layouts and delivery procedures, giving them a chance to meet city leaders and ask questions before the rush of Thanksgiving week.
The hands on work starts early Wednesday, Nov. 26, with the Fayetteville “Turkey Tailgate,” an all day prep event from 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. at the 82nd Airborne Division Association building at 606 Johnson St. Smokers and pitmasters will work in shifts to cook hundreds of turkeys, while other volunteers assemble care packages with toiletries, warm clothing and other donated items.
“We like to say the Turkey Tailgate feels like a family reunion with a purpose,” Fleming said. “People are cooking shoulder to shoulder, making new friends and laughing, but they never lose sight of why they’re there. The gathering is focused on making sure that someone else has a hot meal on Thanksgiving.”
Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, Nov. 27, is the main event. Beginning at 6 a.m., teams of volunteers will set up assembly lines to plate turkey and traditional sides, package meals and load vehicles. Drivers are especially needed between 7:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. to get meals directly to encampments, shelters, roadside locations and individuals who have requested help.
Children are welcome to participate if accompanied by a parent or responsible adult, and organizers encourage families to serve together as a way to teach younger generations about gratitude and community service. The final shift of the day focuses on clean up and takedown, with volunteers needed from late morning into the early afternoon.
Operation Turkey began in Austin, Texas, in 2000, when founder Richard Bagdonas shared his Thanksgiving leftovers with a homeless man on Sixth Street. That simple act grew into a grassroots movement that now operates in multiple states and delivers tens of thousands of meals each Thanksgiving through volunteer-led city teams.
Fayetteville’s team is working to increase its impact as the community continues to grapple with housing insecurity and rising food costs. Organizers rely on both individual donations and corporate sponsorships to cover the cost of food, packaging and supplies. Local businesses, civic clubs, churches and military-affiliated groups are invited to form volunteer teams, sponsor portions of the event or host collection drives for toiletries and cold-weather items.
Because the operation is entirely volunteer-driven, monetary donations go directly toward feeding people, organizers say. Contributions can be made online, by mail or through mobile payment platforms under the Operation Turkey name. In-kind donations of turkeys, sides and desserts are also welcomed as long as they meet food-safety guidelines.
For many volunteers, the day has become as much a personal tradition as a charitable act. Some start their own family dinners later in the afternoon, after spending the morning plating and delivering meals. Others say the experience of looking someone in the eye, handing over a hot plate and offering a simple “Happy Thanksgiving” reshapes how they see the holiday.
Operation Turkey leaders hope the spirit of connection will continue to grow in 2025 and beyond. In addition to serving 10,000 residents locally, the organization encourages people in other communities to explore starting branches in their own towns, using Fayetteville’s model, rooted in military camaraderie, civic pride and neighborly care as an example.
Anyone interested in signing up to volunteer is encouraged to register through Operation Turkey’s website so they can receive orientation details, site information and day of instructions. Community members with questions about sponsorships, meal requests or partnerships can contact Gunter and her team.
As Thanksgiving approaches, Fleming says the message is simple: no one person can do everything, but everyone can do something.
“If you can cook, cook. If you can drive, drive. If all you can do is share the information or make a small donation, that matters too,” she said. “When we each bring what we have, we make sure our neighbors are seen, fed and cared for on a day that can feel very lonely otherwise.”

(Photo: Volunteers pack up meals to hand out during the 2024 Operation Turkey Fayetteville's Thanksgiving event. Photo courtesy of Operation Turkey Fayetteville)