A Pennsylvania man — who wanted to “help the less fortunate” — fed 200 people at a Facebook-advertised Christmas barbecue event.
Alan Collins from Easton held his fourth consecutive Christmas Day barbecue event to feed the less fortunate. Collins and his friends also provided people in need with tents, blankets, shoes, socks, and toiletries, he told PennLive.
“Why not forgo a round of golf and use the money to help the less fortunate?” Collins told the outlet.
“It was amazing to see all these residents of Easton, people I’ve pretty much known my entire life, come out on Christmas and give back to people in our community who really needed it,” Frank Pintabone, the Easton councilman-elect told the outlet.
In addition to providing people with the items they need, Collins hosts a massive food spread consisting of grilled chicken, fried chicken, curry chicken, steamed cabbage, soup, cakes, cookies, pies, hot dogs, and steamed vegetables, among other things.
Collins begins preparing for the event in early December by advertising a call for donations and help in a post on Facebook. While Collins does all the shopping, he leans on support from other people to help pay and bring the necessary supplies for the event.
“Some people came from a bad situation. Some people ran into bad luck. It dominoes,” Collins explained, adding many of the people they help have ended up on the street due to car troubles, losing a job, or not being able to afford to replace a broken appliance. “These people are just trying to figure out how to eat, and how to live to make it through the next day.”
Since 2017, homelessness in the United States has risen roughly 6%. In 2022, roughly 421,392 people had been reported to have experienced homelessness, while 127,768 people were chronically homeless, according to data from the National Alliance to End Homelessness.