CT Foodbank "Fill the Bowl" campaign

The Connecticut food bank's annual 'Fill the Bowl' campaign is off and running again. And this year, more than ever, people are having trouble putting food on the table this Thanksgiving.

By Friday, a truck will be filled time and time again with carts and carts of turkeys. Every turkey will go to a family this Thanksgiving who can't afford one and that's just the way Kathy Unger, of Milford, likes it.

"Cause I don't want to see anyone hungry. Now's the time for giving," said Unger.

The "Fill the Bowl Campaign" by the CT Food Bank raises awareness of hunger in Connecticut, where 390,000 residents struggled with putting food on the dinner table. With a struggling economy, the challenge becomes greater. The holiday calls attention to the need.

"We fundraise all year because $1 is 3.4 meals and $5 is 17 meals. We work hard to get that message across; that an individual donor can make a big difference. And, so our outreach efforts increase when times are tough like this," said Stephanie Stevens of CT Food Bank.

The goal is simple: fill these trucks up with as many turkeys as possible. Fill the trucks and fill the bowl; there's no set number on the amount of turkeys they need. But, the answer is simple: a lot.

"There isn't a number goal. The answer is always more turkeys, always more food. While Thanksgiving is an important holiday, people are hungry year round. So we need to insure that we can provide people with food every day," said Stevens.

Last year the food bank helped 250,000 people in need; this year it's 300,000 which makes the need even greater. And the help, from others, to come through greater.

"There are a lot more families in need this year. I've been donating a long time to this event. And it just feels good to help others out," said Jackie Cirillo of Orange.

"Fill the Bowl" is going on Wednesday and Thursday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Then again on November 20th from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

The location is the Shoprite on Cherry Street in Milford.

Here's the deal: One frozen turkey, 10 non-perishable food items or $10 in cash will earn you two tickets to Saturday's Yale-Harvard game at the Yale Bowl.