Not Enough to go Around at Christmas Dinner

A bit of a chill for some families hoping for help this Christmas season. For more than four decades, Mary Scott's cooked for needy children and collected presents for them, hosting an annual holiday dinner. But some were left out in the cold this year. There just wasn't enough to go around.

Too many children showed up last night. volunteers say some 400 children passed through the doors at the Delaware Center in Savannah, and more than half of them walked away empty handed.

The celebration started successfully. When we first got here, about 200 people was already here," said Pastor Arleen Thornton of the Miracle Deliverance Prayer Center.

So many children were enjoying an early Christmas thanks to the generosity of one elderly woman and those who pitched into help. "We was glad, we were able to feed most all the children," said Mary Scott. "As far as I know, every child got a plate."

But as the evening wore on, more and more children showed up, looking for some Christmas cheer. "There's a lot of needy people and some people have eight kids, six kids," said Thornton. "They don't have any clothes, they don't have no food, they were waiting for a hot meal."

And those hot meals quickly ran out. Helpers say Mother Nature is to blame. "A lot of people donated to the hurricanes, but they forgot about the local people and there's a lot of local people that need things, and they were really hungry," said Thornton. "Some people got two plates. We told them to get one, they got two because they were so hungry."

But the food wasn't the only thing that ran out. Many of the children who waited in line to get presents, ended up with little to choose from. The people who helped Mary Scott say they're going to do whatever they can to make sure all the children eventually get Christmas presents.

"A lot of people showed up, and so we ran out of a few things," said Thornton. "We're going to take names and try to get some more toys out to the people."

If you would like to help donate an unwrapped toy for some of the children who didn't receive any, contact:

Mary Scott at 238.5547, or Pastor Arleen Fuller-Thornton of Miracle Deliverance Prayer Center at 236.6562.

Reported by: Nicole Teigen, nteigen@wtoc.com