“There were a bunch of people sitting around eating turkey off of paper plates,” Such, a partner of the local business Such Video, said. “I was struck by how sad and quiet it was in the room.”

He waited for the chance to jump on an opportunity to bring full-fledged, community-donated Thanksgiving meals into the homes of those in need.

“The Compassionate Feast is just trying to put some of the dignity back into the holiday,” Such said.

When MSU alumna Louise Gradwohl interned at the OTCA she was initially overwhelmed with her job. But after planning the annual Compassionate Feast before the holiday season, Gradwohl fell in love with giving back to her community.

“I caught the bug and I just loved it, so I decided that I really wanted to do community development,” Gradwohl said.

She now is the executive director of OTCA. Gradwohl worked overtime hours to plan for Monday’s Compassionate Feast.

In partnership with community organizations, including Michigan Capital Region’s Big Brothers Big Sisters and Two Men and a Truck, OTCA members and community volunteers helped package 172 Thanksgiving meals for roughly 700 people, Gradwohl said.

The packaged boxes include turkey, eggs, milk, pumpkin pie mix, green bean casserole and other traditional Thanksgiving dinner items.

Mother of three and Lansing native Terronda Whitehorn said she was grateful for the extra help Compassionate Feast provided her family this holiday season.

“Big Brothers Big Sisters got us signed up to get the basket,” Whitehorn said. “It means a lot.”

First time volunteers, such as Holt, Mich. resident Dave Talberg, found the feast an opportune way to give back to the community.

“I try to do as much volunteering as I can,” Talberg said. ”I definitely feel blessed; I have things that other people don’t have. It’s good to help people that don’t have as much. I’ve had rough times, too, (and) I’ve gotten help.”

Providing families in need with the ability to prepare home-cooked meals contributes meaning beyond the celebration of a holiday.

“If they wouldn’t have given (the food) to us, we probably wouldn’t have had a turkey,” Whitehorn said.

Before families receive their food items, Gradwohl makes phone calls from sponsors that have provided her with a list of those in need of a Thanksgiving meal.

“It’s fun to reach out to people in advance and just hear how excited and thankful they are,” Gradwohl said.

OTCA also is planning a Scrooge Scramble 5k on the Lansing River Trail on Dec. 7 to benefit Old Town’s Dickens Village.