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Volunteers pack meals for home delivery at the Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner in 2025. Thousands of volunteers are needed every year to help make the event happen.<\/p>\n
Clint Datchuk\/Contributor<\/p>\n
Carlos Antonio Raymond volunteers at the Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner last year. The call for volunteers for this year\u2019s charitable feast went out Wednesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Clint Datchuk<\/p>\n
Coordinators of San Antonio\u2019s \u201cfeast of the heart\u201d issued their annual call for volunteers to help make the long-running charitable dinner happen.<\/p>\n
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Volunteer sign-up for the\u00a0Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner opened at rauljimenezdinner.com<\/a> at 1 p.m. Wednesday. Registration will remain open until all slots are filled.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Volunteer opportunities include meal prep, kitchen cleanup and decorating duties. Help with greeting at the event also is needed.<\/p>\n This year marks the 47th edition of the dinner, a community table affair put together through donations, corporate sponsorships and volunteers\u2019 efforts. It is one of the largest Thanksgiving benefit events in the country, organizers have said.<\/p>\n Businessman Raul Jimenez and his wife Maria started the dinner in San Antonio in 1979, serving about 100 senior citizens. The event quickly got the support of elected officials, community leaders and sponsors, allowing the Jimenez family to expand the dinner\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n For over four decades, a free traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner has been served to anyone in need of a hot meal. Hundreds of thousands of meals have been served annually.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n RELATED:\u00a0Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner is a San Antonio tradition the whole city embraces<\/a><\/p>\n Patricia\u00a0Jimenez, the daughter of the dinner\u2019s founders, is the president and CEO of the\u00a0Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner. She has\u00a0helmed the annual event since 1997, carrying on the charitable legacy of her late parents alongside other members of the\u00a0Jimenez family.<\/p>\n She said her father\u2019s purpose for starting the charitable dinner was about more than providing a meal.<\/p>\n \u201cHis idea of also showing love was to do something to serve a warm meal on a plate to anyone who needs a place to belong,\u201d Jimenez said at a news conference Wednesday morning<\/a>. \u201cHe called it his feast of the heart.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n This year, event organizers expect to serve 29,000 meals at the Convention Center and deliver another 4,600 meals to residents\u2019 homes, said Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, who helped launch the call for volunteers.<\/p>\n The expected number tops the amount of meals prepared last year, when about 29,000 total meals were served\u00a0and delivered.<\/p>\n The mayor said many San Antonio families continue to be affected by high food costs and financial hardships, so event organizers expect a large turnout.<\/p>\n Jimenez thanked the numerous sponsors of the event, including the Kim Rapier Foundation, which is returning as the event\u2019s presenting sponsor.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n She called the foundation\u2019s $50,000 donation that was presented Wednesday the largest single gift the dinner has received. The contribution, she said, will allow for more\u00a0meals to be delivered and for more children\u2019s activities to be added at the in-person event.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re very excited for this year\u2019s event,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cWhat began as one family\u2019s tradition is now a San Antonio tradition, going strong for 47 years.\u201d<\/p>\n