The Outback Steakhouse, 3454 W. 86th St. was the site of one fundraiser for the Mozel Sanders Thanksgiving Day dinner. Another fundraiser also was held Thursday at Ruth Chris Steakhouse. / DANESE Kenon / The Star

Published: October 25, 2012 @ 9:20 pm

Written by Scott Thein

It might not be Thanksgiving yet, but that didn’t keep supporters from turning out Thursday at two fundraising events to benefit the annual holiday dinner in Indianapolis.

Among those attending the Mozel Sanders Foundation luncheon at Outback Steakhouse on the city’s Northwestside were U.S. Rep. Andre Carson, D-Indianapolis, and Marion County Sheriff John R. Layton.

A companion fundraising dinner also was held Thursday night at Ruth Chris Steakhouse at 96th Street and Keystone Avenue.

All proceeds from the events go to the foundation, which has served hot meals to the needy at Thanksgiving for more than 40 years. Last year, the event provided more than 40,000 meals.

More fundraisers are coming, too.  (CLICK  HERE FOR DATES OF EVENTS)

On November 9 and 10, the Mozel Sanders Annual Radio-thon will be held from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Lafayette Square and Circle Centre malls. The foundation will take donations by phone or on location at each mall.

Mozel dinner celebrates 40 years

Updated: Thursday, 24 Nov 2011, 11:06 PM EST
Published : Thursday, 24 Nov 2011, 5:17 PM EST

• Troy Kehoe
• MSF did does not own this article. All content © Copyright 2000 – 2012 LIN Television Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – It’s been 40 years since Mozel Sanders began serving meals to those in need on Thanksgiving. Organizers of the foundation that now bears his name wanted to mark the anniversary by making this year’s dinner one for the record books. They called it a “Mozel-abration.” For Tanya Gardner, it started as anything but. She’s physically disabled, making the simple act of walking a daily struggle. With medical bills piling up, there was little money left for a holiday celebration. Not that she could have cooked one anyway. “I just can’t. It’s not that I don’t want to cook. I just don’t have the physical capacity to,” she said, with a sigh. This Thanksgiving, it seemed there was every reason for Gardner not to give thanks. But, sure enough, there she was on Thanksgiving morning, carrying bags stuffed with turkey and boxes filled with fixins’.

As she stood in the dimly lit atrium of Lawrence United Methodist Church, her face was lit with joy.

“Being physically disabled, I don’t have the energy to fix the food, and that kind of thing, so I’m just grateful this is close and accessible,” she said.

Then, fighting back tears, she continued.

“There’s a lot to be thankful for,” she said with a wide grin.

She wasn’t the only one smiling.

At 45 “satellite” kitchens across Central Indiana, the holiday trimmings were being prepped for delivery. And, there was no shortage of food–15,000 pounds of turkey, 10,000 pounds of apple crisp, and 80,000 dinner rolls sat at the ready. Every one of them began at Mozel-abration headquarters: the kitchens of Butler University’s Atherton Student Union, where the vision Mozel Sanders had 40 years ago continued to grow.

“We probably will do more than 43,000 meals this year, which is bigger than we’ve ever done,” said Mozel Sanders Foundation spokesperson Barbara Archat. “We want to make sure there is nobody that goes without a meal.”

Making that happen is no small task.

More than 3,000 volunteers from across the city and across the country put their own Thanksgiving Day plans on hold, arriving at the Union as early as 4 a.m. to begin prepping the food. Volunteers then load it up in cars, vans and even FedEx trucks, all headed for satellite locations or even individual homes.

“We know there are people out there that do not have what we take for granted everyday,” said Annette Samuel, who volunteered to dish up turkey and gravy with her bowling team from Cincinnati. “This is a day to give back. It gives you a sense of pride that you’re able to give back to the community.”

“I’m so fortunate that I can go sit down at my own table to eat,” agreed Shayla Hamlin, of Indianapolis. “So, it’s good to feed them first, and then you’re even more thankful when you sit down at your table.”

But, getting to that point hasn’t been easy.

“We raised during the radio-thon about $25,000. But, we needed $50,000. So, we were a little discouraged. But, the very next day, we opened a check for $15,000. Going into today, we were still about $10,000 short,” Archat said.

But, with need still rising, the Foundation chose not to cut their services. Instead, they went even bigger.

“There’s a lot of hungry families, and I think we can still get some more money in,” said Mozell Sanders’ daughter-in-law, Stephanie Sanders, who now serves as the Foundation’s CEO. “Mozell always said: never look down on a man, unless you’re trying to help pick him up. So, we have everybody from every walk of life, every neighborhood. We’re delivering everywhere from Fishers to Greenwood this year. Hunger doesn’t have a name on it. It doesn’t have prejudice. It reaches out to everywhere.”

So, the Foundation wants to reach out as far as it can too, Sanders said.

“More people, more families are hungry,” she said. “But, the good part is, we’re able to feed them. We don’t want anyone to be hungry on Thanksgiving Day.”

“If it weren’t for these volunteers, I would not [have a Thanksgiving meal],” Gardner said. “I think that’s a pretty great reason to give thanks.”

The Mozell Sanders Foundation also gave out 45- hundred dollars in scholarships Thursday to local students who can’t afford to attend college. All leftovers from this year’s event were donated to Wheeler Mission.

The Mozel Sanders Foundation, a 501 (c) 3 organization, was inspired by the late Rev. Dr. Mozel Sanders. Last year we served more than 40,000 hot meals to families in need on Thanksgiving Day and gave away 400,000 pounds of staple goods and groceries. During the Annual Thanksgiving Day campaign, we solicit help from approximately 3,000 volunteers and 45 satellite sites to make this mission possible. Volunteers assist by helping to prepare, serve, and deliver meals to families in need on Thanksgiving Day.