This year marked our eighth annual Thanksgiving day meal deliveries, and once again, volunteers and supporters made this happen for our officers. This year we sent out over 360 meals to officers working on Thanksgiving day and the volunteers making those deliveries.  Officers on duty during the day received hot meals of turkey, dressing and gravy, sweet potato soufflé, green beans, salads and more.  Officers that worked the later shifts came in to find trays of turkey, ham and assorted cheeses awaiting them along with chips, salads, desserts and more. The wonderful folks at The Holy Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church provided the space to us this year for staging dry goods, and supplies, while Paul's Pot Pies in Kennesaw provided the commercial kitchen space where we did some of the prep work. "Come-n-Get It" was busy cooking and packaging meals in the huge commercial kitchen at the Greek Orthodox Church and volunteers arrived throughout the day on Thanksgiving to load up everything needed for assigned precincts. This year was bigger and more organized than any year prior. We would like to thank the nearly 30 volunteers that came out and worked on this holiday to make the day a little nicer for officers on duty. We would also like to thank all the supporters who gave financially to make this happen.  Without you all, this could not happen.

As Christmas approaches, we ask that you keep the men and women in law enforcement who serve our community in your thoughts and prayers. While preparing for joyous holiday celebrations with your friends and family, it’s important to stop and reflect on the joys and blessings in your own life, while also recalling those who are not as fortunate.  We invite you to join with us in supporting four local law enforcement families who have each had a very difficult year. Between them, these Cobb County law enforcement officers, two of whom have children between 3 months and 6 years of age, have endured life-threatening illnesses, medical procedures, multiple surgeries, cancer treatments and more.  They have suffered time away from work, loss of income, and enormous medical bills, all while struggling to support their families. 

What do our officers do when they're not working the streets?  The same things the rest of us do!  They wash their cars, play with their kids, BBQ with their friends, watch their favorite teams play ball, and all the things the rest of us do!  Once in a while we like to offer up an opportunity for these men and women to go out and enjoy some time with their families at no cost to them.  In April, we teamed up with Piedmont Church and provided the men and women of law enforcement in Cobb the opportunity to get out and enjoy a movie and concessions with their families.  We reserved a theater at the NCG Acworth and gave away free tickets to come see "Godzilla vs Kong".  Then in June, thanks to the support of the Cobb EMC Community Foundation, we were able to provide an event we aptly named "Blue Under the Moon".  A large screen movie night at the Cobb Public Safety Village where families of law enforcement were able to watch from their cars, or set up their own space in the parking lot with chairs and blankets.  We showed the Disney Pixar movie "Onward" and set up an awesome concessions stand complete with grilled burgers, hot dogs, chips and drinks, popcorn, snacks and even a Kona Ice truck.  Publix on Cobb Parkway and Jiles Road in Kennesaw provided the burgers and dogs and even brought out a number of volunteers to help pull this event together!
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We'd like to offer our heartfelt "thanks" to Piedmont Church in Marietta and their "Love Does" program, the folks at Publix on Cobb Parkway in Kennesaw, and the Cobb EMC Community Foundation for their continued support.  Without these sponsors, we wouldn't be able to do all the things we do to support our officers.

It is always a thrill when a club, church, school or group of citizens ask about partnering with us on a project.  We love working with others to express support to our law enforcement officers through joint projects and welcome the opportunity at any time throughout the year.  In February 2021, the St Catherine of Siena Catholic School contacted us about how they might express their appreciation and support to the local police departments in their district.  Students worked to create cards and other artwork that was delivered to the Cobb County Police precinct 1 and Kennesaw PD.  We were honored to be a part.

Never before has this country ever known anything like what we are facing with the Covid-19 world-wide pandemic.  While citizens were ordered to shelter in place all across the nation, our first responders continued their work, risking not only their own health but that of the families and loved ones they return home to each night.  Firefighters/EMS, police officers, deputies, and 911 call center operators continue to serve and protect their communities in spite of the dangers.  When PPE (personal protective equipment) such as face masks and hand sanitizer became harder to acquire and shortages began to take place, we managed to find resources through which to purchase and have been able to distribute nearly 5,000 masks and 1100 bottles of hand sanitizer.  To show support for these heroes, we have been providing meals and will soon reach 1,000 meals delivered, with many more still to go.  Thanks to donations received, we have been able to do these things, and we pray that the community will continue to support our first responders by continuing to fund our work.  Many thanks to the men and women who have been working tirelessly to help protect others, and thank you to our donors for making our work possible.  We'd also like to extend a big "thank you" to the local owned restaurants who have been preparing and in many cases, delivering these meals.

We are grateful to our volunteers who helped us serve approximately 400 law enforcement officers on Thanksgiving day.  We would also like to thank Nick at "Come-n-Get It" for the seamless service and delicious meals.  Also many thanks to Publix, the folks at Cracker Barrel, Kennesaw Chick Fil-A, Paul's Pot Pies, Cobb EMC Community Foundation, and all our other corporate and private contributors.  We wish you all a very happy holiday!

Once again, Blue Thanksgiving was honored to partner up with Cobb PD on their 2nd annual "Cool Cars and Cops" event.  This year the car show joined with the CCPD "Ride with the Blue" bike rally and the crowds were impressive!  The cars and bikes on display this year were amazing and the weather held, allowing everyone to enjoy this beautiful Fall day.  Many thanks to all the wonderful businesses who provided raffle prizes, including 4WD Parts, Auto Zone and Advance Auto Parts in both Kennesaw and Acworth, Pep Boys in Marietta on Whitlock, and so many others.  This event raised money to benefit the SWAT Santa program and was a huge success.  If you missed this year's show, keep your eyes open for the next one in Fall of 2021!