GREENWOOD— On Thursday afternoon, Beth Vidales is filing up a plate for one of the guests at the Greenwood VFW.
"I was homeless at one time and I never had some place to go, to have a hot meal, home cooked meal. I don’t serve anything store bought, they can get that anytime of the year," said Vidales.
She started hosting a Thanksgiving meal for veterans in 2012.
"I lost my husband in June and he loved Thanksgiving. It was his favorite holiday and my grief was so strong. I was just heartbroken and I thought why not cook for the veterans because he was a Vietnam veteran," said Vidales.
It started out as eight people in her house. After moving to the Greenwood VFW in 2018 it grew to dozens. Last year, she served 70 people.
"They come here and they don’t have to worry about the stress outside," said Vidales.
Doretta Boger has been coming to the meal since 2019.
"Coming here it’s the camaraderie of other veterans and everybody who doesn't have a family come here. We are a family as it is, just coming here and having an enjoyable evening, talking about the past, and talking about our future," said Boger.
Vidales says she'll keep hosting as long as she can and hopes to reach 100 people.
