LWCC Foundation Grants Provide Thanksgiving Meals for Frontline Workers

As COVID cases surge around the country, families were encouraged to forgo gathering beyond their immediate households for Thanksgiving this year. Despite these difficult times, the CEO of St. Bernard Parish Hospital, Kimberly Keene, wanted to keep one holiday tradition alive for her staff: a delicious turkey dinner. Her employees have made many sacrifices to continue the frontline fight against COVID-19 — working long hours, isolating from loved ones, and putting themselves at risk every time they go to work. These brave Louisianans deserve relief and recognition.

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With the help of grant money from the LWCC Foundation’s Louisiana Well Again: COVID-19 Response Program, the hospital worked with Sysco to provide turkeys for the entire hospital staff, including nurses, doctors, technicians, medical assistants, respiratory therapists, administrators, and environmental services staff.

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“Even though we've been asked to restrict our outings and skip our traditional celebrations, I think just having a turkey makes it feel like it's Thanksgiving,” Keene said.

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Located just outside of New Orleans, St. Bernard Parish is a town dependent on oil, gas, and tourism — industries that have undergone considerable losses during the pandemic. Keene says many of her staff have become the sole breadwinner in their households due to budget cuts and layoffs in these key industries. This turkey drive, along with a previous food drive in September, has helped Keene’s employees keep food on the table.

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“I'm so thankful and grateful that there are people out there, like the folks at LWCC, that reach out and want to help,” Keene said. “We're going to get through this pandemic together.”

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St. Bernard Parish Hospital serves nearly 50,000 people across St. Bernard, New Orleans, St. Tammany, and Plaquemine Parishes. If you’d like to show your appreciation for the hospital and its staff, give them a shoutout on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. Keene prints out the community’s words of encouragement and puts them up around the hospital to boost staff morale. But more than anything, she urges you to wear a mask. “That's what we really want you to do,” she said. “We know it works.”

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“The LWCC Foundation believes Louisiana’s special sense of community will help us all come out stronger on the other side,” says John Hawie, chair of the LWCC Foundation. “Providing our healthcare workers some relief with a turkey dinner is a great way to provide support.”

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It is the dedication of the frontline healthcare workers across Louisiana that inspires LWCC to continue serving the state with pride and excellence. Learn more about the company’s commitment to elevate Louisiana at LouisianaLoyal.com.