Money collected during a Salina organization’s one day charitable collection event has been donated to help fund a Salina Christmas tradition.

OCCK Transportation last week organized the 2017 Holiday Give & Go charitable campaign, a community fundraiser. All monetary fares received by OCCK general public transportation, and on the CityGo buses were donated. Each CityGo bus also had a fare box inside the bus and drivers accepted donations, as was money collected from non riders who were encouraged to make a donation.

All of the money was donated to the Bill Fekas Family Christmas Dinner.

According to the organization, because of their great ridership and community support, OCCK Transportation was able to present Bill Fekas with a $700 check for his annual holiday dinner.

Fekas, with the help of a small army of volunteers, has been preparing a traditional Christmas turkey dinner with all the trimmings for over three decades now for a gathering that has grown from serving about 30 people the first year to over 4,300 in 2012.

This year Fekas will prepare 200 turkeys for the meal. Among other things, he is also purchasing a half-ton of potatoes, and 800 loaves of bread to make stuffing with.

The Bill Fekas Family Christmas Dinner is at the 4-H Building in Salina on Christmas Day. Donations are needed to make sure the dinner remains a Salina tradition.

Those who want to send a check can mail it to : Bill Fekas Family Christmas Dinner – PO Box 2173 – Salina Kansas 67401. Bill can be reached at 785 827 6262. Donations are tax deductible.

The free meal is open to anyone and everyone in the community.