Thanksgiving 2025
List of Needs
Please refer to Mark's Facebook page for images of these items
Here is the long awaited, detailed list of the items we will need for the 2025 Free Community Thanksgiving Dinner. I will also be making a post with the details about how and when you can volunteer to serve with us.
We are planning on providing about 700 complete, free Thanksgiving dinners to our neighbors again this year. This is a body of Christ effort which the Lord blesses every year.
Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. You can donate items from the list or make a financial contribution at the link at the end of this post.
***This year, one of our major financial contributors will not be making donations to this project. So, we are praying for some other donors to fill in the financial gap we are facing this year.***
If you are planning on donating any of these items, you will need to coordinate dropping the items off with me.
Turkeys -- We will be cooking 30 turkeys. We will probably have to buy some of these this year. We will also need folks to help us freeze and cook turkeys again.
Stuffing -- Preferred Pepperidge Farms 16 oz bags. The box in the picture contains 3 16 oz bags. We need 30 16 oz bags
Jars of chicken base -- We need 3 Jars
Milk -- We need 3 gallons of whole milk
Turkey Gravy Mix -- enough to provide 700 servings of gravy
Instant potatoes -- Preferred Idahoan 3.24 lb box.
We need 10 boxes -- ***6 of these have been purchased, we still need 4 boxes***
Sweet potatoes or canned yams -- Pic 3 We prefer #10 cans of yams/sweet potatoes. We need 30 cans OR we need 75 40oz cans
Mixed Vegetables -- Pic 4 We prefer #10 cans of mixed vegetables
We need 30 cans or 200 15 oz cans (Green beans will be our 2nd choice)
Butter -- 50 lbs of salted butter ***This has been donated***
Cranberry Sauce - 12 #10 cans or 96 15 oz cans
Rolls -- 700 dinner rolls ***Cellones will probably donate these 
***
Desserts -- 700 servings to fit a 3.5x3.5 to go dessert container
We prefer pies or cakes, please.
Sugar -- 50 lbs
Mini Marshmallows - 20 10oz bags
Brown Sugar -- 25 lbs
Pats of butter -- 700
Non-Food items
- 700 3 oz portion cups with lids -- Pic 5 700 sets
- Case of thank you bags -- Pic 6 One 1000ct box
- Dessert to go containers -- Pic 7 (3.5x3.5 inch 700 containers)
- 3 Compartment to go containers -- Pic 8 (9 inch x 9 inch containers) we need 700
- Large foil pans with lids -- Pic 9 60 sets
- 25 banana boxes
Link to make online donations in support of the Thanksgiving dinners:
https://www.paypal.com/donate/...
Checks can be made out to: Compassion Network and mailed to
Compassion Network
PO Box 3055
New Kensington PA 15068
How You Can Help
The Compassion Network will be offering FREE Thanksgiving dinners to our neighbors again this year.
Here are the ways you can volunteer to help with our annual Free Community Thanksgiving Dinner, on November 27th.
- Who is available and willing to help with meal preparation on Wednesday the 26th? We prep from 11am until done
- Who is able to help cook and tray the meals on Thanksgiving Day the 27th? We go from 8am til about 2pm
- Who is able to store a frozen turkey(s) ASAP? I would prefer to place the turkeys with people who are also willing and able to cook them for Wednesday the 26th.
- Who will help by providing food donations, making deserts and/or giving financial donations to make the meal possible?
Last year over 700 free, complete Thanksgiving dinners were given to our neighbors. That is only made possible by the donations we receive. - Who would be able to helps us deliver meals to the local hi-rise buildings in the community on Thanksgiving Day. Would be a 2 hour time commitment, 11am - 1pm.
- Most importantly, we ask our prayer warriors and intercessors to pray for this outreach. Specifically, pray for the necessary provision of food and monetary donations; pray we will once again have the many hands needed to make this outreach a success; pray eternity will be changed thru this effort; pray for those who receive the meals, that the Lord will touch and draw these folks to Him.
Each year the Lord blesses this outreach which blesses so many in our communities. We are very grateful for those who participate, support and sacrificially give of themselves and their resources to make this meal possible. Lord bless you.
You can use this link to make financial contributions. Use the link and click on the send tab to make your donation.
https://www.paypal.com/donate/...
Checks can be made payable to the Compassion Network and sent to this address:
Compassion Network
PO Box 3055
New Kensington, PA 15068
Watching God at Work
God is moving in Pakistan!
Some of you know we have been working to establish a ministry base in Pakistan for over the past year.
In the village we serve, the Lord provided the way and the means to purchase land with the intent to plant and raise fruits and vegetables for as many of the poor as possible. Also, we will be increasing our chicken flock to increase egg production and to provide chicks and chicken meat. There is immediate progress being made in growing food to make the village self-sustainable.
Our team started discussing the urgent need for immediate food production months ago as I truly believe villages like the one we serve will be dealing with life and death starvation issues in the not too distant future. The recent flooding has increased this possibility exponentially unfortunately.
Starvation, a lack of clean water and disease, especially cholera, are the greatest problems facing the people now. The millions that have been displaced will end up heading east toward areas like the one we serve. So, there will soon be a strain on areas that are currently "unaffected" by the monsoons.
If you would like to know more about the ongoing ministry there and/or how you can support that kingdom work, please feel free to contact us. There are huge opportunities to expand this work and to watch as the Lord builds a shining city on a hill for the other surrounding villages to emulate for his glory.
Learn More
To learn more about the exciting work God is doing at our village in Pakistan, please visit our Pakistan Ministry page by clicking the link below.
What We Do
How we are helping
The Compassion Network is made up of local churches in the 15068 zip code. During this pandemic, our outreach goals remain the same. We want to meet the needs of those in our community, especially in times of crisis. Currently, the biggest need we are seeing right now is to provide food. We are meeting that need in a couple of different ways:
- We are also providing boxes of perishable and non-perishable food items to people and families who need them as well. We are delivering to them on a regular basis, as this need continues to grow.
- Meal preparation is also being done on a more limited basis. This involves providing cooked meals to families in need. We currently have several families willing to provide the food for the meals, and to cook the meals. Since many are concerned about being in contact with others at this time, we also have people willing to deliver meals safely, if needed.
- Furniture, Appliances and Household Items. While we are limited to what is given to us, as well as storage space to keep these items, we do our best to provide furniture, appliances, pots and pans, dishes, etc. to those that need these items. Please reach out to us to find out what is available, and how we can help.
- Clothing is another area where we have some items if needed. Please reach out to let us know what you need, and know we will provide whatever we can.
If you want to volunteer in any capacity, or if you are in need right now, please contact us:
Phone: 724 448 8173 email: Invr4get911@aol.com
What We Provide
The Compassion Network has never been just about charity. Our goal is to change lives. We strive to build relationships with the people we serve, and to make them aware of the life-changing power of Jesus Christ. To that end, we currently provide:
- Prayer Support
- Feeding & Food Ministries
- Housing (when available)
- Transportation Ministry
- Employment/Jobs
- Furniture and Appliance Ministry
If you would like to make a monetary donation, you may click the button below.
Additional Information
A few different observations about the Thanksgiving Dinner outreach that took place this year (2022)...
God gets all the glory. Blessed beyond words to serve with such a great group of people.
This year was quite different in so many ways. Donated items came in slowly. Fewer people cooked turkeys. Financial support was down significantly this year. A significant number of the volunteers who helped were silent this year. We didn't have enough delivery people.
But, God has his ways. Everything needed showed up, even if it was at the last minute. A few people cooked 8 to 10 turkeys each. Many new faces came and served with us seamlessly. We even had a last-minute delivery team come from 45 minutes away to fill in a great need.
Yet, we had more meals go out to our neighbors than ever before. Some of those meals were distributed on the streets in Braddock which were a great, unexpected blessing to people in need there. We cooked over 40 turkeys this year and ended up with turkey to give to more families. Our prep day and Thanksgiving day went better than it ever has before. This was the most efficient and cohesive team we have ever had.
The comments from those we delivered too were nothing but positive. The prayer needs in the parking lot and blessings those neighbors received with our prayer partners cannot be measured.
On another note. No matter what outreach effort we are involved in, God has shown we can expect all things to work for his glory, especially when it seems like the future looks bleak. It has been a definite process, but we have learned it is all out of our control and God keeps all his promises. We are ever more grateful for his provision, his people and his wisdom for his ways are greater than ours.
Our Ministry
Our Mission
Born out of a desire to connect people willing to help those in need, Compassion Network tries to allow people and organizations to work together to be Christ's hands and feet in the 15068 area.
We look to match needs with available resources, in all kinds of different situations.
Serving
Maybe you know about a need that exists, or you have resources and a desire to meet needs. If you do, we want to hear from you! Let us know the needs you are aware of, as well as any resources you can bring to help those in need.
Get Involved
Jesus tells us that when we serve the "least of these", we are serving Him. (Matthew 25: 31-46).
Won't you join us as we reach out to those who need a helping hand?
What's Happening?
Submit a need
If you are aware of a need in our community, please use the button below to let us know about it.
Available Resources
This page will help give you access to information about resources that may help with your need. It's a good place to start.