NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — What are you grateful for? That's the question I aimed to ask in Donelson today, and it turns out there was much more there to be truly thankful for.
The question was simple: what are you thankful for? But generally, the answer was a "who" rather than a "what."
Like with volunteers Joan Ostrander and Marilu White, who have been organizing community events for years. Marilu emphasized the importance of giving credit where it's due, saying it's "just a blessing to be here."
However, Joan praised the tireless work of Marilu organizing the event, noting how someone "deserves the credit for having tirelessly put this together and organize this" and has "tirelessly educated our kids at Nashville."
Even Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell, a former student, showed up to express his gratitude.
"My fifth grade teacher, Marilu White," O'Connell said, identifying who he was thankful for.
"I'm thankful to live in the city where you have so many people willing to take care of each other," O'Connell said.
At the heart of the celebration were Donelson Cafe's Mark Dickerson and Chef Kevin Miehlke, who aimed to feed 1,500 people for their ninth annual "Truly Thankful Thanksgiving" feast. Even they had a "who" for an answer when asked what they were grateful for.
The couple, who "got married in this room," shared an emotional moment when discussing their gratitude for each other.
"This is the power of love of food. It's everything coming together," one of them said. "It's such a blessing."
Amid all the plates of food going out, the scale of their operation was impressive. When asked how many turkeys were carved, the answer was 106.
But it turns out their friends and community were, in turn, thankful for them. Dickerson and Miehlke received a humanitarian of the year award during the event.
"We are speechless," they said upon receiving the recognition.
"It's about loving others, taking care of others and caring for others," they said.
All the meals were provided free of charge.
If you have thoughts on this story email me at Amanda.Roberts@NewsChannel5.com. I'd like to hear them!
This story was reported on-air by Amanda Roberts and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
