Range Resources annual 2000 Turkeys fundraiser gobbles up donations
Range Resources employees, along with student volunteers from local schools, took to the streets of downtown Washington and Canonsburg on Wednesday to raise funds for 2000 Turkeys.
The annual 2000 Turkeys campaign partners with Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, Food Helpers of Washington County, and City Mission Boxes of Love to provide Thanksgiving dinners for Washington County families in need.
Range Resources, a longtime supporter of 2000 Turkeys, matched all donations dollar-for-dollar up to $20,000, and collected food at its 11th annual Range Resources Food Drive.
Range raised $50,675 with the company’s contribution to donate toward the 2000 Turkeys 2025 campaign.
“We are so proud of the response we received from the Washington County community today. We raised over $50,000, bringing our total to nearly $500,000 since 2015,” said Christina Kramer, community relations manager at Range Resources.
All money goes directly to making sure food-insecure families in Washington County can celebrate a Thanksgiving meal with their loved ones.
This year, more than 160 students from local schools – Charters-Houston, McGuffey, Trinity, Washington, and Washington Area Career and Technology Center – turned out to help, manning street corners in Washington and Canonsburg.
They held up signs, shook cowbells and homemade noisemakers, waved at passersby, and cheered for motorists who honked their horns or stopped to make a donation.
Katie Magyar, a teacher at Chartiers-Houston’s Allison Elementary School, accompanied students from the elementary school’s JAM Club, a community service club.
“It’s important for kids to give back to the community, and for them to realize that they can make a difference in their community,” said Magyar.
Washington High School senior James McCarter was among the members of the high school Student Council and Key Club who volunteered their time.
“It’s really nice being able to come down here and do this. I’ve been fortunate enough to be in a position where I’ve never had to worry about Thanksgiving dinners, but I understand that’s not always the case, so it’s really fulfilling to come down here and be able to help and do things like this,” said McCarter.
Volunteers “raised their game” this year, with some wearing turkey costumes and turkey hats, and the Trinity High School choir sang while it collected donations, adding to the upbeat mood.
The United Way of Washington County collected non-perishable items at the Main Street Pavilion in Washington. By 2 p.m. Wednesday, nearly all of the seats of a school bus were filled with canned goods and boxes of food that people donated. Another bus in Canonsburg also was used for food collection.
Throughout the day, Range volunteers passed out 2,000 rubber turkey-ducks to donors, an homage to the thousands of small and large rubber ducks that appeared along Pike Street in Canonsburg in October. The Observer-Reporter, who along with WJPA sponsors 2000 Turkeys, distributed newspapers.
McGuffey High School Student Council co-adviser Allison Gray, clad in a turkey costume, helped students collect money.
“The kids had a lot of fun. It was a chance for them to support the community and those in need,” she said.