LAWRENCE — No one went hungry yesterday at The Psychological Center's Daybreak Shelter as a large crowd sat down to a Thanksgiving meal cooked and served by Texas Roadhouse.
The restaurant employees were assisted by Daybreak's staff and volunteers.
Dan Cairl, manager of Texas Roadhouse, contacted Daybreak Director Andrew McMahon and offered to provide the entire meal, including dessert.
Daybreak is a 30-day emergency transitional shelter that regularly serves about 50 people nightly.
Residents enter at 5 p.m. each night, and beds are on a first-come, first-served basis.
The shelter's staff usually cooks and serves meals with the help of volunteers — guests who offer their time to help clean the shelter, do laundry, sort donations, and handle other duties.
Daybreak volunteers clean the shelter daily — floors are washed, sheets and towels for 50 guests are washed, the grounds are swept, and the bird feeders are filled.
Shelter volunteers receive a bed and must remain sober to be in the house.
One Daybreak volunteer, incarcerated for many years, was instrumental in beginning a new shelter procedure in which he serves as a mediator for other guests when they are having difficulty following shelter rules.
Another volunteer is enjoying several months of being sober, has reunited with his family, and encourages other Daybreak residents to attend neighborhood Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous meetings with him.
Still another Daybreak resident, a young woman, volunteers five days a week at The Psychological Center's PEOPLE! Recovery Center.
Outpatient substance abuse treatment, the Structured Outpatient Addictions program, driver alcohol education and peer-led recovery support services are available at the center's offices at 11 Union St.
