Ceres High School senior Angeles Ramirez wishes she joined the campus Soroptimist Club a lot sooner.

“I like helping people so the S-Club was a perfect fit for me,” said Ramirez, a second-year member. “I like volunteering.”

Ramirez and more than a dozen students from Ceres High plan to provide free meals to 500 families this Thanksgiving in partnership with Center For Human Services.

“Because of COVID, the kids wanted to do something to help out the community,” said Angela Durossette, the school’s S-Club advisor for the past 12 years. “We’re asking every single teacher in the district to nominate a family that might benefit from a (free) Thanksgiving meal. Our goal is to feed at least 500 families.”

“Being able to do this, especially when everything is harder economically, socially and politically, will bring a little bit of joy to people in the community,” Ramirez added. 

The S-Club is promoting the community service project, Ceres Giving Back To Our Community, on its Facebook page (facebook.com/CHSsoroptimist). 

A $30 donation will cover the cost of one meal for one family.

Donations are being accepted through Ceres High School’s Webstore (chsbulldogswebstore.myschoolcentral.com).

“I really believe in this community,” Ramirez said. “I’m hoping those who can donate will. It’s only a benefit.”

Each family will receive turkey, a five-pound bag of potatoes, two cans of corn, two boxes of stuffing, one package of bread rolls, two evaporated milks, four sticks of butter and one pumpkin pie.

The S-Club will use monies raised through donations to purchase food from Food 4 Less, Save Mart, Cost Less, La Perla Tapatia and Beto’s Bakery.

Diestel Turkey Ranch donated the meat.

Pumpkin pies were ordered from Beto’s Bakery.

Couper Condit purchased the rolls.

A meal voucher will be mailed to each family.

Date of pickup is from 3-7 p.m. on Nov. 24 at Ceres High’s student parking lot.

“We have a couple teachers that volunteered to deliver if families don’t have transportation,” Durossette said. 

The S-Club will serve free Thanksgiving meals to families on a grander scale this year.

“We’ve done this in the past but we’ve only fed 100 families,” Durossette said. “I know there are people in this community that will donate $30 to families that are struggling. I’m thinking we can feed at least 500 families.”