Hopewell hosting homeless awareness benefit

The second annual Thanksgiving Homeless Awareness Benefit will be held on Nov. 24 at the Redland Christian Migrant Association's Hopewell campus.

The campus is located at 100 E. Ernest E. Sims St. in Avon Park.

The event, which includes a food basket giveaway for about 250 families, is being hosted by Beachfront Community Outreach, Highlands County Coalition for the Homeless and the Redland Christian Migrant Association.

Anyone interested must register in advance to receive a holiday food basket that includes turkeys and all the fixings.

"It's going to be a great event," said Tonya Marshall, community coordinator for the NAACP Highlands County branch.

The event will be held from noon to 5 p.m.

There will be free food, disc jockey music, and lots of fun.

The kids are out of school that week and they will have a bounce house, music and free Wildcat hamburgers and Rattler hot dogs, named after the Bethune Cookman University and Florida A&M University football teams in the Florida Classic.

There will be organizations with booths represented there.

Anyone interested in a booth, making a donation or in being a sponsor should call Marshall at 863-386-0522 or Arnold Wilson at 863-446-3018.

Wilson is NAACP Highlands County branch vice president and outreach coordinator and founder of the Beach Front Community Outreach.

There will be a food basket giveaway today at the Hopewell campus from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. for 50-plus families who registered in advance.