Social services organizations in Haines have had to pivot their traditional Thanksgiving offerings this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and many are finding it challenging to preserve the holiday’s communal feel.

“Normally, what we do is we have a community Thanksgiving dinner in coordination with the (Haines) Ministerial Association where anyone is welcome to come and have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner,” Salvation Army Captain Kevin Woods said. “We met a few months ago and discussed that we’re just not comfortable with getting that many people together at one time.”

Large group meals present COVID-19 mitigation challenges, so Haines organizations are pivoting to individually delivered meals to mark the holiday.

Around Christmas, the Salvation Army gives out food boxes with the fixings for a traditional holiday meal, Woods said. “Since we’re not doing a group Thanksgiving meal, we’re going to hand out boxes at Thanksgiving as well.”

Woods said the plan is to put together 150 food boxes to give away on the second to last Thursday of the month. The ministerial association is involved with the effort as well.

Haines Senior Center has made similar plans to distribute individual meals.

“We worked really hard to come up with a plan to see if we could open, but right now we’re serving about forty-one seniors a day. If we did (a group meal), we would have to limit it to twelve seniors at the senior center. We’d actually be serving fewer,” Haines Senior Center site manager Caroline Hankins said, adding that the meal would be additionally complicated by masking and social distancing requirements. “For the safety of the seniors, we just decided to stay closed,” she said.

While senior center residents will still be able to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal, Hankins said she is concerned the communal aspect of the holiday will be lost.

“(The traditional Thanksgiving meal) is definitely a social event. People bring in grandchildren or friends,” Hankins said. “People will still get the meal, but it’s not going to be as special as everyone gathering together.”

Woods said he has similar concerns about a loss of social connection as a result of changes to the holiday offerings.

“There’s going to be a lot lost. A good share of the people that came to meals in the past didn’t necessarily need the meal, but they really needed the fellowship and didn’t want to sit by themselves on Thanksgiving,” Woods said. He said a lot of the people in this category are senior citizens.

Local organizations are trying a few different tactics to give a sense of community during socially distanced times.

“Churches are trying to reach out to people. It’s not the same as a community interaction, but we’re going to make the best of it and try to brighten up people’s holiday in spite of that,” ministerial association member Deacon Vince Hansen said. He said the question of how to remain in touch is a constant concern for religious leaders in the community. Many have people they call on a regular basis to check in with.

Woods and Hankins both said they are trying to customize Thanksgiving meal packages to try to give people a sense of connection.

“We’re trying to figure out how to make it a little more special, like sending some care packages along with the meals,” Hankins said. She said anyone who would like to contribute something to the care packages should call her at the senior center, 766-2383.

Woods said the Salvation Army boxes will contain handmade cards and other uplifting materials.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published recommendations for individuals planning to celebrate Thanksgiving. It notes that the safest way to celebrate is by limiting events to members of the same household. For those participating in events outside their households, the CDC recommends masking, maintaining a six-foot distance, disinfecting surfaces, and bringing personal food and utensils. Additional information is available at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays/thanksgiving.html.