LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — The fourth Annual Wok with Friends to Fight Hunger will be taking place on Saturday, November 30th at 8:00 a.m.
A group of volunteers work together every year to provide Thanksgiving meals to those in need. This year, they already have over 700 meal requests and are in need of volunteers.
Friends Hoang Duong and Zach Smith, took two things they love, cooking and serving others and turned them into something that helps hundreds through out the community.
"Every year my wife and I cook a Thanksgiving meal for our family and then we always buy extra portions so that any left over's we can box up and take downtown to feed the homeless," explains Zach Smith, the organizer of the event.
"We had a giant cart of food and someone looked over at us and said, hey you must have a huge family? Yeah we do, but we also like to feed the homeless as well. It was a complete stranger and she ended up offering us $20 to help pitch in for that."
That was the moment they realized how big of an impact they could make.
"The next thing you know, all of our friends and family started making contributions, volunteered to help, and we went from just feeding maybe 50 people out of our home, to the next year partnering with Hoang, and I think we fed 500 people the first year," says Smith.
Hoang Duong is the owner of the restaurant The Wok off Waller Avenue in Lexington.
"Zach reached out and said he wanted to do something bigger," explains Duong. "We thought if we did it here, we would have a safe and effective location and avenue to do it."
Last year, volunteers cooked and passed out over a 1000 meals, which included deliveries to The Hope Center, Light House Ministries, and New Life Day Center.
Zach and Hoang say the day is about gathering with the people they love and helping those who need it most.
"Getting to hang out with our friends and family, all day here and knowing what we're doing is helping people. There are so many issues in the world, and just finding a way to make someone's day a little bit brighter, is great," says Smith.
If you want to Volunteer or donate, click here.
You can also contact The Wok for more information.
