In the spirit of Christmas and togetherness, meals and dinners were provided to San Diegans all across the county.
The Salvation Army hosted their 33rd annual Christmas dinner for the homeless and needy at Golden Hall in downtown. Several hundred volunteers served the guests who feasted on turkey, dinner rolls, mashed potatoes and other comfort foods.
Philanthropist Joan Kroc brought the tradition to Golden Hall in 1983 when she hosted the first dinner to make sure no one spent Christmas alone.
The Rise &Shine Restaurant Group will hold their sixth annual free Veterans Christmas Dinner at BRICK Liberty Station from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday for 500 local veterans and their families.
Restaurateur Johan Engman says this Christmas will be the largest number of veterans fed yet as the event has outgrown its space from last year.
The dinner is in partnership with Wounded Warrior Project and Three Wise Men Veterans Foundation.
The nonprofit Serving Seniors also provided holiday meals to around 300 low-income elderly people at the West Senior Wellness Center on 4th Avenue downtown.
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Julia Meshack, 65, says the senior center is like an extended family for people like her who don't necessarily have their own families near at Christmastime or who have lost family members.
"This is one of the few places that I feel I’m being appreciated for being a senior," she tells NBC 7.
The senior, who is grateful for the Christmas dinner and the other services the nonprofit provides, has sage advice that's relevant all year round. “The important thing," she says, "is to enjoy life.”
