Pendas Law Firm provides free turkeys for families again this Thanksgiving

On Sunday, an event was held to help put food on the table this Thanksgiving for those in need.

Lines were wrapped around the corner of Pendas Law Firm in Fort Myers for families to pick up their free turkeys.

For the 13th straight year, The Pendas Law Firm’s staff was on hand to personally distribute a truckload of turkeys.

Lou Pendas si the CEO of Pendas Law Firm. “It started 13 years ago after a client of mine actually admitted to me that he didn’t have the money to go buy his family a Thanksgiving meal,” said Pendas.

This year, the challenge has been trying to balance meeting the needs of our community while keeping everyone safe. With another Thnkasgivign falling within the pandemic, there were measures in place to uphold that safety, like masks and social distancing.

The firm’s CEO says he’s continuing the tradition because he realizes that many people face financial hardship right now.

“As you can see, we’ve had people here with oxygen, wheelchairs, missing limbs, so not everybody is involved in the recovery of this economy coming out of the pandemic,” Pendas said.

“These are folks that have come to us, and they share their hardships,” Pendas said.

Event organizers say this year, the need is even greater. “I understand quite honestly that this is not a permanent solution, but at least, at the very least, this Thanksgiving season, they don’t have to worry about a meal and that we can pass that on,” said Pendas.

In total, Pendas said they gave away 575 turkeys in Fort Myers and 3,000 across his five other locations statewide. Pendas also estimates that these giveaways have fed more than 600,000 people over the last 13 years.