VENICE, Calif. – With kids of his own, Thanksgiving is one of Blake Griffin's favorite holidays, because more than any other it's about family and thanks.
“It's literally the opposite of greed and want,” Griffin said. “It's about spreading the love and being thankful for what you have.”
It's with that idea that the L.A. Clippers Foundation began its “Season of Giving” on Tuesday, providing local families in need with food, clothing and book's at the 28th annual “Teamwork at the Table” Thanksgiving event, which took place at the St. Joseph Center in Venice.
“It's really cool just to see these families,” Griffin said. “This meal and these donations mean so much to them, so for us to come out and just be a part of it, it means a lot to us.”
Griffin, Jamal Crawford, Wesley Johnson, Marreese Speights, Brandon Bass and Diamond Stone all joined in the event distributing turkeys, food items, clothing and books to the families that took part.
Crawford said it's a dream come true for the players to be in the NBA for a living, but events such as Tuesday's are the ones that make the real lasting impact on lives.
“That's what it's all about, taking care of the community and helping as much as possible,” said Crawford, who understands what many of the families in attendance are going through needing some extra help. “I remember, not necessarily being in line for this, but having to do certain things, being on food stamps, things of that nature. I get it, I really do, and my heart goes out to them. That's why coming to something like this, there's a certain pride and a certain joy you get.”
Speights, who grew up in St. Petersburg, Fla., said he comes from a place where he sees many similar families, and it takes guts for those families to admit they could use some extra help for their children and to attend events such as Tuesday's “Teamwork at the Table.”
“It touches my heart,” Speights said. “It's a great time to be here and see these people be here and have the courage to come out here and come get this kind of stuff. A lot of people won't come because of egos, but these people have no egos. They come here and get the things they need, so it's good to be here and good to support it.”
It's the 10th year local supermarket chains Ralphs and Food 4 Less teamed up with the Clippers to donate the food and turkeys for the event.
Dr. Va Lecia Adams Kellum, president and CEO of St. Joseph Center, said she's proud to be a part of the annual event and tradition, which is so greatly appreciated by those in attendance.
St. Joseph Center serves low income and homeless individuals in West Los Angeles and South Los Angeles. One woman in attendance at Tuesday's event, who now has three girls in college, said she'd gone to St. Joseph for 39 years.
With the Thanksgiving event, she now has food that will allow everyone in the house to eat together as a family. Kellum said the whole point of the event is to bring families and communities together.
“This is really what they need,” said Kellum, who added that many of the families in attendance don't have the money to pay rent from month to month or to feed food on the table.
That's where St. Joseph Center can help.
Casey Marshall, one of the mothers in attendance with her young daughter, said there was a misunderstanding when she went on leave from her employer regarding her benefits. Through that process, she got referred to St Joseph, where she was encouraged to come as often as needed.
“It's fantastic,” Marshall said. “I always meet fun people, and (my daughter) is a good little magnet for connecting with people from the community that come here to St. Joseph's to pick up food. Then, I think having everybody here working together is fantastic and really helps to build morale and a real sense of community.”
It's Marshall's first time at the event. And it will be her daughter's first Thanksgiving.
“The idea that we're going to be able to get something special for her as she's growing, she's going to be eating turkey for the first time, she's finally old enough, it's going to be wonderful,” Marshall said.
