The Community Thanksgiving board told the Gadsden City Council on Sept. 23 that it will discontinue the centralized Thanksgiving Day meal that served nearly 11,000 plates last year after 27 years of operation.

Board chair Craig Scott and long‑time organizer Darlene Harcrow said rising costs, declining volunteer numbers and growing demand made the event unsustainable. “Rising costs, declining volunteer numbers, and increasing demand have made it unsustainable,” Scott told the council. Harcrow said the board unanimously decided about three weeks ago to step back and encouraged churches and neighborhood leaders to pick up the effort at a local level.

Harcrow provided budget context: food costs alone last year were about $24,000 and the board typically ran roughly a $48,000 overall budget for the event. She said the board will dissolve its 501(c)(3) and is working with the city attorney on next steps for unused funds and supplies; the organization also has large quantities of donated utensils and packaging that it intends to offer to other churches and groups.

Pastor Joe Simmons, who led the original effort at New Liberty and remains active in planning, described a coalition approach in which pastors will organize site‑based distributions across neighborhoods. He said leaders aim to identify site pastors and equip each site to serve an estimated 500 plates so that the collective effort can match or exceed prior totals while restoring a more personal, neighborhood focus. Simmons said a planning meeting of area pastors is scheduled for Oct. 4 at 9 a.m. at New Liberty to coordinate an east/west and north/south approach.

Council members praised the decades of volunteer service and encouraged the board and local churches as they restructure. Council members and the mayor noted existing neighborhood providers already serving meals on Thanksgiving Day (for example, Salvation Army, New Liberty and others) and said they expect volunteers and churches to mobilize. The board emphasized it remains willing to share supplies and financial reserves with churches that will conduct neighborhood efforts.

The council took no formal action on the report but thanked the volunteers and board members for more than two decades of service.