Free turkey dinners on menu

Free Thanksgiving dinners are on the menu in the Amboy-Yacolt area today.

The community is getting together to offer the meals from noon to 3 p.m. at the Mountain View Valley Grange, 40107 N.E. 221st Ave. in Amboy.

The holiday feast is free and everyone is invited, but donations will be accepted.

It’s the first effort at putting together a Thanksgiving dinner for the community, said Mark Miller, who teaches at Yacolt Primary School.

Miller said the effort grew out of a conversation at a meeting of the North Clark County Lions Club. The club distributes free food baskets each Christmas, Miller said. But in addition to that annual effort, some members decided that people in the area also might want to take advantage of a free Thanksgiving dinner. The effort grew as other participants, donors and volunteers pitched in.

Organizers are planning food for about 200 guests, Miller said.

Several other organizers have notified The Columbian about their free Thanksgiving offerings today:

n Battle Ground City Grill, 1710 S.W. Ninth Ave., Battle Ground, dinner served from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

n Share House, 1115 W. 13th St., dinner served from 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. (or until food is gone). Share House is also putting together more than 500 food boxes for families to prepare and serve meals at home.

n Camas Assembly of God, 500 S.E. Everett Road, offers a free community dinner; chicken, ham and spaghetti are on the menu from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

n Chronis’ Restaurant, 819 Main St. Vancouver, is serving a free ham dinner from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

n Eagles Lodge, 107 E. Seventh St., Vancouver, serves a free Thanksgiving brunch — with eggs, pancakes and other breakfast fixings as well as traditional Thanksgiving fare — from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

n Salvation Army headquarters at 1500 N.E. 112th Ave., Vancouver, will serve free turkey dinner from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

n The Knights of Columbus is delivering hot Thanksgiving meals to residents in the Camas-Washougal area, working out of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church at 324 N.E. Oak St. in Camas.

Tom Vogt: 360-735-4558 or tom.vogt@columbian.com.