Paul Ganzer is the owner of The 395 Craft Beer & Spirits in Golden Valley. In year's past, he has held turkey drives to help people who may otherwise go without a Thanksgiving dinner.
"Basically, before COVID, we did this probably three or four years ago," Ganzer said. "We tried to fill up some of the food banks up north, here."
Victorian Saloon also held a turkey drive, a few years ago. One of the many downsides of the pandemic was it kept some people from holding food drives. This year, four bars are teaming up to hold the Battle of the Turkey Drive.
"It was almost difficult, last year, to get together like this because of the restrictions so we decided to make a little competition out of it and have some fun with it and give back to the community," Johnny Eastwick, Owner of Victorian Saloon said.
The 395, Victorian Saloon, 40 Mile Saloon and Legends Grill Sports & Spirits will all offer a free beer to anyone who donates a turkey, all day Saturday.
"We thought a good way to do it would be to offer a free beverage for a turkey and we ended up getting, last time we did it, about 100 turkeys and nine hams," Ganzer said.
Firestone Walker Brewing Company is providing the beer. The turkey drive is a team effort but it is also a competition. The goal is to get the most donations but that requires community involvement.
"I hope that all of our regulars and people that come and see us all the time will come in and help us out with," Joe Belanger, Owner of 40 Mile Saloon said.
The bars are spread out in the North Valleys, Sparks, South Reno and Midtown. That gives lots of people the chance to donate at the bar that is closest to their neighborhood.
"Everybody loves to support their local bar, so it's a good way of getting the community involved, not just having the bar say 'Hey, come down and support us' but all the regulars want to show that their bar is the best bar," Dylan Kelley, Owner of Legends Grill, Sports & Spirits said.
The Reno-Sparks Gospel Mission, St. Vincent's Dining Room and St. Michael's Catholic Church will pick up the turkeys, Sunday.
"When you tell them you have the opportunity to get a couple hundred turkeys and all you've got to do is pick it up, they say 'Ready, willing and able,'" Ganzer said.
The four bar owners have been friends for many years. The winner of the contest will receive a traveling turkey trophy and bragging rights. Having a beer with friends while donating a turkey might be the fun part, but they say the gift of a Thanksgiving turkey to a hungry family is what is really important.
"It's just a really good event," Belanger said. "A good way to give back to the community and the less-fortunate and the families in need."
"It feels great," Kelley said. "The reality is we are literally in business because of our community and the people that are out there. To be able to give back, I mean that's as good as it gets for us."
"I know all of our businesses are big parts of the community," Ganzer said. "We want to kick back as much as we can and I think this is a really easy way for us to do it."
While the turkey drive is not until Saturday, it is never too early to donate. Each bar has refrigeration to store them.
"We've already had a few people drop off turkeys early, because they won't be able to be here, tomorrow, and the smiles on faces are already showing," Eastwick said.
The food drive will likely put smiles on the faces of some hungry families, this Thanksgiving, too.
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