Clear Path for Veterans, a nonprofit veteran resource center in Chittenango, will host a Thanksgiving meal for veterans and their families Thursday. The feast is just one way the organization shows its appreciation for veterans.
Mark Wasileski, who served in the coast guard during the Vietnam War, is one of a few volunteers prepping Thursday's food. He’s blanching broccoli while others are cutting beets.
“It gives you something to give back to the community," Wasileski said. "The vets really appreciate it. The old guys are a real kick in the butt. They have their own little table. The Korean War and World War II guys, don’t sit at their table because they’re the premiere guys here. They have their own little space. We lost a couple of them this year.”
Clear Path is preparing for more than 300 guests with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner of mashed and sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, cranberries, dinner rolls and pecan pies. Karen Krull-Robart, the culinary program manager is spatchcocking one of 24 turkeys.
“You remove the backbone and then you turn it over and you break the breastbone so that it will lay flat and it will cook faster,” Krull-Robart said.
She said the organization started as a service dog training facility for veterans.
“It’s an amazing transformation, love seeing it," Krull-Robart said. "Guys that have never come out, and would not go out in public, can with a service dog. They feel safe and protected.”
Clear Path also serves lunch to veterans every Wednesday and offers a wellness program of massage, acupuncture and Reiki, all free to veterans and done by volunteers.
