GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Green Bay Packers annual sit-down Thanksgiving dinner at Lambeau Field didn’t happen this year because of the game with the Miami Dolphins.

That also meant area nonprofits had to shift their Thanksgiving Day operations to other locations.

For decades, Christian Outreach has provided Thanksgiving meals. Organizers said while this year their location may have changed, their mission remained the same.

What You Need To Know

  • Christian Outreach shifts Thanksgiving Day operations to the KI Center in Green Bay due to Packers game

  • Organizers said 2,000 meals were prepared this year versus 3,000 meals last year 

  • Since 1983, the Green Bay community has embraced each other at Thanksgiving, sharing a hot meal and fellowship

It was a hectic holiday for volunteers with Christian Outreach. They were sorting, counting and packing thousands of Thanksgiving meals inside the KI Center in Green Bay.

“It’s important that we take time out of our day, recognize that not everybody has the blessings in their lives that we do at this time, and make things a little easier, because everybody has the right to enjoy a holiday with family,” second-year volunteer Kirsten Holland said.

Jessica Zeitler, president of Christian Outreach, said for 41 years, this organization has provided holiday meals to Brown County residents. 

“We focus on providing people in the area that are in need or alone with a Thanksgiving dinner. And we’re just volunteers from different churches in the area,” Zeitler said.

For the last several years, Lambeau Field hosted the organization’s Thanksgiving Day operations, but the Packers Thanksgiving Day game forced a shift to the KI Center.  

Zeitler said because of this move, they prepared fewer meals. This year they prepared 2,000 compared to 3,000 last year — but Zeitler said no one would go hungry.

“The decrease in meals is just the space. We feel horrible when we fill up and we’re not able to provide for people that call after we’re full, and we try to give them resources that may another place might be providing a meal,” Zeitler said.

Holland said last year she packed meals at Lambeau. She said while there’s lots of atmosphere at Titletown, she was thankful to have a place that allowed the group to get the holiday meals out to Brown County residents.

“Lambeau has a little bit of excitement because we are in path of the Turkey Trot ending and people walking by. It was fun to see everybody in their get-ups. But, you know, the people here at the KI Convention Center did a great job hosting us and making everything easy so we can deliver this to the community,” Holland said.

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