Latrobe-area residents can sign up for free Easter dinner

Free Easter meals are being brought to the Latrobe-area community by a group of individuals focused on helping others.

Signups end Tuesday for the Make a Difference group’s initiative. The meals will be prepared for takeout or delivery April 16, the day before Easter, at Grace Bible Church & Academy in Bradenville.

“I do this because I enjoy it,” said Jessica Gray, one of the group members. “It makes me feel really good.”

Some of the group members started preparing and distributing the meals for Thanksgiving 2020. They’ve continued helping the community every Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter since.

Gray said they average around 200 meals.

The Saturday meal will consist of ham, scalloped potatoes, corn, coleslaw, bread, pierogies and dessert. About 20 high schoolers at Grace Bible Academy will be making cake for the desserts, administrator and Pastor Jason Losier said.

“We were very excited to partner with them for such a great cause,” he said.

The meals are intended for people who live in the Derry, Latrobe and Blairsville areas, Gray said.

As of Wednesday, about 160 people had signed up to get a meal.

The offering came about in 2020 because of the impact the coronavirus pandemic had on many lives. Preparing a holiday meal is a kind gesture and a way to help alleviate any worrying about the special day, Gray said.

“A lot of people are in a really bad spot since the pandemic,” Gray said. “We just wanted to do something nice.”

It’s a pick-me-up for those behind the pots and pans, too.

“We’re even smiling when we’re cleaning up,” she said.

The group accepts donations toward its holiday meals. The Domino’s location on Route 30 in Unity will be donating a percentage of its sales Wednesday toward the group’s mission.

To sign up for a meal, fill out a Google document on the Make a Difference Facebook group.

The meals will be distributed between noon and 2 p.m. April 16 at Grace Bible Church & Academy, 128 Bradenville School Road, Bradenville.