2024 Miracle on the Hudson Turkey Drive

It’s hard to believe that we are in our 15th year. This year, there are 450 families in Northeast Florida who need our help to enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner in their home. My story, which many of you are familiar with is below. I once again ask for your help and support so we can truly make a difference in other people’s lives.

My Miracle on the Hudson plane crash left me with a compassion for the homeless that I never would have had without going through the experience of seeing myself in the mirror dressed entirely in clothes given to me by others. Fourteen years ago, I was on my way to a speaking engagement in mid-November and I heard on the radio that the Salvation Army had not received nearly enough turkeys for the families that they help at Thanksgiving. I knew I had to do something about it. So I sent an email to five people and in 24 hours, we raised enough money to buy 140 turkeys. The following year I sent an email to 10 people and in 24 hours, we raised enough money to buy 160 turkeys. The next year the email went to 15 people and received some media coverage. When the donations were tallied, we had enough to donate 244 turkeys. And then we jumped on the social media bandwagon and the numbers continued to increase. Last year we were able to donate 492 turkeys to the Salvation Army and 36 to Mandarin Food Bank totaling 528 overall. And since this all started, our total is over 6000 turkeys.

If you would like to contribute, give me a call or drop me an email or contribute right on this site. If you would like to enlist others, that would be awesome. $60 buys two turkeys and makes a difference in the lives of those families. If you choose not to give, no problem. I only ask that you keep those in need in your thoughts and prayers to overcome the challenges they face each day.

If you want to post the information on your Facebook page and ask others to give, that would be greatly appreciated.

To each of you, thank you for considering my request. It is very difficult for me to reach out and ask for money but it is a wonderful cause and every single penny goes towards helping a needy family have a nice Thanksgiving. Thanks again for considering my request.