‘Turkey Man’ leads drive to provide Thanksgiving meals to Erie area’s needy [Erie Times-News, Pa.]

Nov. 19--Rick Hinman wasn't always "The Turkey Man."

Until 26 years ago, he was better known as a family man and father of four who worked in the information technology department at Erie Insurance Group.

Then one November, Hinman found himself with an extra Thanksgiving turkey on his hands. He donated the bird to his church, and a concept was born.

This week, the Thanksgiving Dinner Drive, spearheaded by Hinman, will provide about 3,500 holiday meals to needy families in the area.

Teams of volunteers spent the past two Saturdays packing ingredients for a full Thanksgiving feast -- including a frozen bird, cranberry sauce, soda pop, corn, dinner rolls and pie -- that will be distributed starting today by about 40 local agencies.

"For me, it's something I always wanted to do to set an example for my family," said Hinman, who initially delivered meals himself and would take his kids along.

There were times when they were taken aback when they went into homes and saw how little some families had, he said.

"I think it taught them a lot about charitable giving," Hinman, 59, said. "It was very important to me that this remains a grass-roots thing -- neighbor helping neighbor -- because that works very well."

Hinman's small food drive quickly gained momentum. The second year, he provided meals for about five families, then 25 the third year. As the circle of friends and family members offering to help grew, he eventually took the idea to Erie Insurance.

That's where things really took off. Erie Insurance designated it as a corporate charity, opening the door for its employees to come on board. And they did, in force.

"It's a very, very generous company," Hinman said.

Eventually, Hinman persuaded GE Transportation management employees to become involved, too, and they contributed about 550 of the 2,265 meals distributed in 2011.

Hinman and his volunteers initially shopped at local grocery stores for items to include in the meals.

But a few years ago they teamed with Second Harvest Food Bank, which collects donations and makes volume purchases of certain ingredients. That partnership enabled Erie Insurance to begin matching individual cash donations of at least $25.

It also allowed the Thanksgiving Dinner Drive to provide meals to more families at a lower cost, about $32 per meal. Other volunteers donate trucks, gasoline and the boxes used to pack and transport the meals.

Most donations now are cash, much of it raised through raffles, gift baskets and 50/50s, although a few donors prefer to shop for the items themselves and turn them over to Hinman.

Either way, the meals find their way into the homes of families served by agencies such as Bethany Outreach, which delivered 339 meals on behalf of the Thanksgiving Dinner Drive in 2011; St. Patrick's Food Pantry (210); St. Martin Center (195); and International Institute of Erie (112).

"We try to hit the poorest of the poor," Hinman said. "We continue to see the numbers grow as far as what's needed. I think if I could come up with 5,000 dinners, we certainly would find enough families who need them."

Hinman plans to retire in April. He will hand off the drive to Charles and Penny Spacht and their son, Corey, all Erie Insurance employees.

But "The Turkey Man" -- a nickname Hinman's friends gave him back at the beginning -- promises not to be a stranger.

"I'll help out for as long as I can keep lifting boxes," Hinman said.

JOHN DUDLEY can be reached at 870-1677 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNdudley.

___

(c)2012 the Erie Times-News (Erie, Pa.)

Visit the Erie Times-News (Erie, Pa.) at www.GoErie.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services