BALTIMORE — The brothers of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity incorporated kicked off Thanksgiving week by feeding dozens of families in Baltimore City.
The City View of McCulloh Apartment Complex houses a large population of senior citizens, many of whom are not able to spend time with their families for the holidays.
So the fraternity brought Thanksgiving to them: dinner, drinks, and dessert, all free of charge.
“It’s a wonderful feeling. You know, a lot of times individuals get so tied up with life, but to be able to come back and provide community service is a wonderful feeling," says Turner Rascoe.
Barbra Taylor, who lives in the apartment building, says things like this make the holidays feel special because people are doing things for others.
“We want to show our appreciation. We are so thankful and so grateful for everything they do. They are here every year, and they feed us, and they just show us a lot of love," says Barbra Taylor.
This event was not just about feeding the community.
It is also a way for the fraternity to teach important lessons to the younger generation, like the boys in Kappa League.
“So what we do with them is educational occupational guidance of youth, and in the spirit of training for leadership, we had them come out in the community and do community service with us as well," says Don Ervin.
Don Ervin, the polemarch of the Baltimore Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi, says it's important to pass on these lessons, especially when it comes to bringing communities together.
“So it's an intersection of the entire community were going from feeding the seniors to teaching the young how to feed the seniors," says Ervin.
Barbra Taylor says she is grateful the organization thought about the seniors and people who are unable to spend the holidays with family.
She hopes others will take advantage of events where people are willing to give freely to others.
“Sometimes your family don’t even have you know anything for you to get; if you even get with your family, you never know what their situation is. You know, so get what you can get if it's there. Go get it," says Barbra Taylor.
The fraternity had enough food at the event to feed over 350 people.