Traci Jacob is looking forward to Thanksgiving, even though she grapples with two autoimmune diseases and has neck surgery scheduled for right after the holiday.

Fortunately, the 47-year-old will be able to host a meal with her parents and a friend on Thursday because of Chabad of Hunterdon County in Clinton, N.J. Rabbi Eli Kornfeld, his wife Rachel and volunteers will prepare and deliver a cooked kosher turkey—along with the usual sides of stuffing, mashed potatoes and green beans—to Jacob and others who are homebound.

Jacob, who is on disability and also received a meal last year, says “it makes it a lot easier to bring everyone together. You don’t have to worry about cooking. You don’t have that worry of going out to buy food for the meal, spending money. You have the rabbi and everyone helping you.”

Kornfeld delivered 125 meals last year. He also hosted a Thanksgiving meal at the Chabad House for residents of Freedom House—a local residential treatment facility for men struggling with addiction issues. And he plans to do so again this week.

It makes no difference whether the recipients are Jewish, emphasizes the rabbi.

“We want everyone to feel part of this day. If it’s meaningful for them, it’s important for an organization like ours to make sure that those who are less fortunate can be lifted up. They should be able to be lifted up in the joys of their community,” says the Chabad rabbi and father of six.

This will be the fourth year that Kornfeld and a host of helpers deliver meals.

Preparing the turkeys for roasting
Preparing the turkeys for roasting

On Nov. 24, about 30 volunteers will gather in the morning at the Chabad House to help prepare and organize the food. Then they will start driving the meals around western New Jersey until about 3 p.m., when they will return to the Chabad House to help with the meal for the men who are in treatment. Kornfeld expects to host about 100 people and deliver about 200 meals.

“People come out in droves to get their hands dirty—to cook, to prepare, to cut, to peel, to donate—and I think that’s a big part of this. Bringing the community together, [bringing] those that can offer help with those that need it,” says the rabbi.

‘Unite People With Acts of Goodness’

Kornfeld, 39, adds that the program also boosts the significant number of area residents who have been affected by a current heroin epidemic.

Wrapping the cooked meals for delivery
Wrapping the cooked meals for delivery

Glenn King was at the peak of his heroin addiction when he entered Freedom House in 1991. He got sober and then started working as a driver for the organization, eventually becoming the executive director.

The nonprofit organization sometimes has “difficulty keeping our doors open,” acknowledges the 58-year-old King. Assistance in the form of the Thanksgiving meal allows the organization to use money that would have gone towards food into requisite treatment.

More importantly, King says, is the joining of various communities—Jews, Christians, African-Americans and Hispanics, among others. This will be the second time that Chabad has hosted the meal. People around the table last year were so appreciative that they stood up and said what they were thankful for; interestingly, reports King, “there was not a disparity [between residents and volunteers] in the expression of gratitude. People seemed to be grateful for some of the same things.”

King notes another important factor: that neither the rabbi nor the volunteers seem to judge residents of Freedom House, which puts everyone at ease.

CTeens helped cook last year for the Thanksgiving Day meals.
CTeens helped cook last year for the Thanksgiving Day meals.
Cteens also made signs and decorations for the dinner at the Chabad House.
Cteens also made signs and decorations for the dinner at the Chabad House.

Kornfeld notes that this year’s meal will be especially important in the midst of concerns about racism and anti-Semitism in the United States. “The desperate hunger for positivity, for kindness, for respect for others is so needed in our country right now, to bridge divides and to unite people with acts of goodness,” he says.

One example of giving back, of performing good deeds, includes the work of the local CTeen chapter. Girls and boys helped cook and pack food last year, and made signs and decorations that welcomed guests to the Chabad House for dinner. They also pitched in to serve the buffet-style meal, alongside other volunteers.

Rabbi Shloime and Chana Greene
Rabbi Shloime and Chana Greene

CTeen is directed by Rabbi Shloime and Chana Greene, who work to provide educational, social and community-service programs for area teenagers. The young company also boosted spirits on Thanksgiving, as is certain to again this year.

And then there are the benefits to people like Jacob, who in addition to her health problems, which include multiple sclerosis and three herniated disks, lost custody of her children during a divorce when she was struggling with addiction. Still, she awaits Thanksgiving dinner, and then three days later will undergo surgery. She says she has already informed the hospital staff that she would like to see the rabbi afterwards.

As to what she’s grateful for: “I’m very blessed to have the rabbi and Chabad in my life.”

To request a Thanksgiving dinner for someone in need or make a contribution for the meals, contact Chabad of Hunterdon County.

Men from the locally based Freedom House filed into the Chabad House last year for Thanksgiving dinner, as they will do again this year. At left is Glenn King, executive director of Freedom House.
Men from the locally based Freedom House filed into the Chabad House last year for Thanksgiving dinner, as they will do again this year. At left is Glenn King, executive director of Freedom House.
Volunteers, including CTeen members, serve the meal at Chabad of Hunterdon County.
Volunteers, including CTeen members, serve the meal at Chabad of Hunterdon County.
Enjoying a full plate of food
Enjoying a full plate of food
Lining up for the buffet meal
Lining up for the buffet meal
King, right, wrestled with drug addicition before eventually becoming sober and working his way up the organization.
King, right, wrestled with drug addicition before eventually becoming sober and working his way up the organization.
Participants stated what they were thankful for, including the joining together of various communities.
Participants stated what they were thankful for, including the joining together of various communities.
Rabbi Eli and Rachel Kornfeld, and family
Rabbi Eli and Rachel Kornfeld, and family