Gaiser Center’s Brendan Stinson and Anna Shuster carry water while delivering Thanksgiving dinner for residents at VOICe on Wednesday, Nov. 22. Justin Guido/Special to the Eagle

CRANBERRY TWP — Families with the county’s Victim Outreach Intervention Center, or VOICe, enjoyed a taste of the holidays this Thanksgiving with donations from the Ellen O'Brien Gaiser Center.

Executive director Joe Mahoney said the Gaiser Center has made a tradition of donating food supplies to like-minded organizations ahead of the November holiday.

“When I started here, I felt it was very important for us as a nonprofit — who really relies on the generosity sometimes of our community to survive — to give back to our community partners,” he said. “And part of that was doing a food drive every Thanksgiving.”

This Thanksgiving marked the addiction treatment center’s third giveback drive, according to Mahoney. The organization has donated to Robin’s Home and MHY Family Services in previous years.

“Our staff actually donates the food supplies that we need,” he said, “or they donate money for our kitchen manager to purchase the food supplies.”

Mahoney said VOICe, the county’s domestic violence and sexual assault victims' support program, was chosen in part for its overlapping mission with the center.

“VOICe just made sense, because we have a women’s treatment center and those women, unfortunately, have gone through some very similar experiences as the people of VOICe have,” he said. “That was really important.”

R. Courtney Riffer, director of prevention and outreach with VOICe, said the program is currently housing six individuals in the county.

Riffer said the donation would help those sheltered with the program have “some semblance of a holiday” while they are away from family and friends.

“When you’re not at home, trying to create as much normalcy as possible — especially when there’s kids involved — being able to have a decent holiday meal can be a big part of that,” he said.

In the lead up to the holiday, Mahoney said the Gaiser Center coordinated with VOICe to guarantee everyone sheltered with the organization a “traditional Thanksgiving experience.”

“It’s enough for full Thanksgiving meals for all the families — traditional turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, desserts, pies and cookies,” he said.

The meals were cooked ahead of time by the Gaiser Center’s kitchen manager Zach Harter, according to Mahoney, with most items requiring only simple preparation by the families.

“So all they’re going to have to do is throw it in the oven and heat it up,” he said. “It’s all cooked and ready to go for them.”

Mahoney said he hoped the center’s donation would help the families have a holiday celebration of their own.

“Where the mothers and their children are sort of able to have that moment of bonding time together in maybe un-ideal circumstances,” he said, “And maybe a little bit of peace.”

Riffer agreed.

“We’re just so thankful,” Riffer said. “We can use it.”

Jessica Wasson, prevention and outreach advocate, said VOICe is “always welcoming donations” from the community.

“We have our Christmas collection going on right now where people can ‘adopt’ families or they can give to our general wish list,” she said. “Which is all on our website.”

Mahoney also recognized the Gaiser Center’s staff for their contribution and dedication to the Thanksgiving food drive and said the organization looks forward to it every year.

“We are talking about this in September, ‘What’s out there that we can kind of give back to?’” he said. “So we’re always honored to do it.”

Gaiser Center’s Joe Mahoney, left, gives Thanksgiving food to VOICe’s R. Courtney Riffer on Wednesday, Nov. 22. Justin Guido/Special to the Eagle

Gaiser Center’s Joe Mahoney, left, gives Thanksgiving food to VOICe’s R. Courtney Riffer on Wednesday, Nov. 22. Justin Guido/Special to the Eagle

The Ellen O'Brien Gaiser Center gave VOICe Thanksgiving dinners include, from left, Zach Harter, Gaiser Center; Brendan Stinson, Gaiser Center; Anna Shuster, Gaiser Center; Jessica Lawsson, VOICe; Joe Mahoney, Gaiser Center; R. Courtney Riffer, VOICe; and Ave Jackson, Gaiser Center, on Wednesday, Nov. 22. Justin Guido/Special to the Eagle