TIVERTON — This year Lee-Ann and Adam Larrivee say they will have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, which is hard to believe because they are expecting 1,000 guests.

Ever since Mr. and Mrs. Larrivee bought the Ponta del Gada Restaurant last January, they have wanted to promote community outreach. On Thursday, Nov. 27, tthey will get that chance when they host a Thanksgiving feast from noon to 4 p.m. at the Ponta Delgada Club.

They extend an invitation to the homeless, the elderly, needy families who can't afford a traditional dinner and people who would rather join a festive group than cook for one.

Adam Larrivee stirs a pot at the Ponta Delgada Restaurant. PHOTO BY RICHARD W. DIONNE JR.

"There are so many people who go without at the holidays, and we want to do something nice for the community. I think there's a great need. So no one will be turned away. Everyone will be served," Mrs. Larrivee said.

This is a first-time event, but Mr. and Mrs. Larrivee hope it will become an annual celebration and a family tradition. Not only will guests be fed, but also they will leave with a food basket to take home.

"I think my kids need to see that not everyone has what they need. I want them to appreciate what they have," said Mrs. Larrivee, whose four children, all younger than 14, are doing what they can to help spread the word, collect the food, enlist volunteers and decorate the hall.

"We are getting a good response from area volunteers. I have a brother-in-law who's a teacher at Durfee High School who's helping with a canned food drive there. The Boys and Girls Club is pitching in with a food drive, and so is Somerset High School. The Ponta del Gada Club has donated its function facility, which seats over 600 people at once," said Mrs. Larrivee.

To avoid spending money on costly manufactured decor, Mrs. Larrivee appealed to public school children and their art teachers. Local Fall River elementary school children are donating their Thanksgiving art projects to decorate the hall with turkeys, cornucopias and Indians.

The Larrivees are still asking local businesses and food distributors to help with donations, either monetary or canned. They say they need all the help they can get; after all, Mr. Larrivee is cooking for an estimated 1,000 guests.

"We've gone through newspaper ads and distributed fliers to different organizations and senior services, and a lot of it depends on word-of-mouth," she said. "So we really have no idea how many people to expect. It's a little scary. It could be five or 1,000 people who come!"

Turkeys needed

The Larrivee family wants to thank the community for its overwhelming response to volunteer this Thanksgiving, but more help is still needed. Turkeys and any decorations that have to do with turkeys or Thanksgiving are in demand.

To make donations:

*Call the Ponta Delgada Restaurant at 624-2500,

*Call Lee-Ann Larrivee at 508-264-2909,

*Or send a check to Thanksgiving Fund, c/o Lee-Ann Larrivee, P.O. Box 1284, Fall River, MA 02722.

By Chelsea Wonacott-Mershon

chelsea@eastbaynewspapers.com