LMPD officers deliver Thanksgiving meals to more than 1,500 people

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Dozens of officers with the Louisville Metro Police Department started off on Wednesday with an important assignment that had them delivering Thanksgiving meals to hundreds of homes.

It is an annual mission that always happens the day before Thanksgiving. After morning roll call, officers are dispatched to neighborhoods across the city, like the Villages of Park DuValle.

Officer Co'Earia Clark is assigned to LMPD's Sixth Division, but on Wednesday, she helped cover several beats.

"It was pretty much like a morning roll call," she said. "I got there at about 8:30."

Then it was out with the turkeys and the dressing.

"I actually just came in asking what did they need help with, and at that point, they just kind of sent me everywhere," Clark said.

Every year, dozens of LMPD officers volunteer to deliver Thanksgiving dinners to more than 1,500 people. The center of operations is always the historic Greater St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church on Bland Street.

That's where retired interim LMPD Chief Yvette Gentry attends.

"My church has always been the anchor for it," Gentry said.

This year, she's back for another assignment.

"I love that police department," Gentry said. "I spent my life there and so I want to see that future bright for them."

In fact, Gentry started the annual outreach 24 years ago while delivering fans and air conditioners to seniors.

"Well, when we encountered those seniors, we were impacted by that and we wanted to figure out how do we keep touching base with them," she said.

Delivering and serving the meals give police officers a chance to connect with the people they're sworn to protect and serve.

"They take a lot of pride in this, and they have participated, and they cook, and they drop off, and so this is a big deal for them," she said.

And for a lot of the officers, it's also a family affair.

"And they bring their kids," Gentry said. "Some of the kids have been coming here since they could barely walk and hold a piece of pie."

And the people on the receiving end are always happy to see officers at the front door.

"The, you know, reactions that we get out of people is nothing but love and, you know, excitement," Clark said.

All of the food was donated by several organizations, including a religious group made up of police officers.

LMPD officers deliver Thanksgiving meals to more than 1,500 people