United Way’s Annual Thanksgiving Project Distributes Meals to over 1,000 Families at the Mary Ellen McCormack Community in South Boston

BOSTON — WinnCompanies, United Way, the Mary Ellen McCormack Task Force and the Boston Housing Authority today hosted a distribution of more than 1,000 Thanksgiving meals to families at the Mary Ellen McCormack public housing community in South Boston. The distribution was part of United Way’s 20th Annual Thanksgiving Project, which will deliver more than 11,000 Thanksgiving meals across the region this Saturday. 

The Thanksgiving Project at Mary Ellen McCormack is part of a partnership between WinnCompanies, the Mary Ellen McCormack Task Force and United Way to create accessible programs and services relevant to resident needs and interests, particularly around health and economic mobility among residents.  City Councilor Ed Flynn joined United Way volunteers to help distribute the Thanksgiving meal bags, which included onions, potatoes, canned corn, canned green beans, cornbread mix, stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy, rice, beans and an aluminum turkey pan. Families also received a grocery gift card in their bags to purchase a turkey. 

In concert with the Thanksgiving meal distribution, nearly 200 volunteers from WinnCompanies, local nonprofits, and United Way surveyed 700 resident households to understand the needs and priorities of residents – and what they envision for the future of their community.  With Boston College as a research partner, the survey is a critical piece of WinnCompanies’ efforts to redesign, redevelop and expand the 80-year-old public housing development into a mixed-income residential community with easier access to retail, community and meeting space, a community center, and thoughtful integration of services and engagement focused on health, housing stability, education, economic mobility, employment, and support to youth and families.  

WinnCompanies, designated in 2017 by the Boston Housing Authority to redevelop the public housing community, has engaged United Way to lead a partnership with more than 20 city-wide service providers and community organizations aimed at transforming Mary Ellen McCormack into a place that fosters a stronger quality of life for residents. When reconstruction is complete, the property will be one of the largest mixed-income developments in the country.

WinnCompanies is the lead sponsor of the Thanksgiving Project at Mary Ellen McCormack along with support from partners at Lee Kennedy, The Architectural Team, CBT Architecture, Copley Wolff Design Group, VHB, MassHousing, Howard Stein Hudson, AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, Nelson Mullins and the City of Boston Credit Union.

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