Saskatoon Friendship Inn ready to serve up Thanksgiving dinner

With Thanksgiving quickly approaching, final preparations on one of the busiest days of the year are being made at Saskatoon’s Friendship Inn.

The annual Friendship Inn Thanksgiving turkey dinner will take place on Monday.

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Sandra Kary, Friendship Inn CEO, said it takes a while to make sure everything is good to go for the big day.

“We are making between 60 and 70 turkeys. We are anticipating between 2,000 and 2,500 turkey dinners,” Kary said, who noted this is their biggest meal of the year.

Turkeys marinading at the Friendship Inn in Saskatoon. (Will Mandzuk/650CKOM)

Kary said the Friendship Inn staff are cooking “far in advance” and getting everything prepped. The Inn even called in extra volunteers to help out, as preparing a meal of this size requires a lot of staff to make sure the day runs as smoothly as possible.

Kary estimates around 30 to 40 people, from kitchen workers to volunteers, will be involved in helping out throughout the day.

“On any given day, there’s probably at least 12 staff between the dining room and the kitchen,” she said. “There’s probably going to be about 20 volunteers on top of that.”

The Frienship Inn relies on a large group of volunteers. Each month, the non-profit benefits from about 1,200 volunteer hours. (650 CKOM file photo)

Since the need has grown over the last year, more turkeys are being made. But due to limited serving times, the number of turkey dinner plates being prepared isn’t significantly more than in previous years.

“It’s a little more than last year,” she said. “We prepared for the same amount last year and had about 2,300 meals in the previous year.”

Kary said the need for this dinner has been a “forever” changing situation in Saskatoon year over year.

“We’re starting to see more people come through our doors on an everyday basis,” she said. “Thanksgiving just draws that many more. If we have a beautiful day, it means more people can come and we’re happy to serve the community.”

Kary said she expects there to be “quite the line” outside the Friendship Inn before the dinner gets underway at 11:30 a.m., which she said will be extended until 1:30 p.m.

“People will start lining up well before that,” she explained.

Kary said this year’s meal will include Thanksgiving staples.

“We have the most amazing turkey,” she said. “Stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, great vegetables and of course, pumpkin pie.”

Along with meal services, the Friendship Inn offers take-away meals, access to washrooms, and even warm clothing during the winter months. (650 CKOM file photo)

Kary said having an event like this — even if it is just for a couple of hours — is so important to the community and the people who rely on the Friendship Inn services.

“I think anytime we do a big holiday meal like this means that we care and that we don’t want people alone on a holiday,” she said. “It’s important to extend friendship and good food, and people look forward to it.”

Kary said she enjoys this time of year as she gets to see how many people are willing to give back and help those who are less fortunate.