Dayton barber shop becomes place for hot holiday meal -- not a haircut -- this Thanksgiving

DAYTON — No haircuts this Thanksgiving Day at the Lux Barber Lounge, 1115 W. Third St. in Dayton. No, this was the place to get a hot holiday meal and a serving of love.

“We don’t have it all, but we know there are people that are less fortunate,” Antwione Shackleford, the co-organizer of the Thanksgiving Giveback told News Center 7′s Xavier Hershovitz.

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“We just want to make sure we can give back and be a service to the community.”

Tae Wilson, another organizer of the event, said, “even if they don’t have their family, at least they can feel like they have family with the food cause it’s made with love.”

Dion Green, yet another even organizer, said he, Wilson and Shackleford wanted to create space for those who don’t have anyone to make them feel needed.

That feeling was for more than just the holiday.

On Thanksgiving Eve, volunteers handed out approximately 1,000 meals in 60 minutes at two locations of the West Dayton Give Back, an event put on by the Dayton Young Black Professionals.

“I’m super surprised we didn’t even make it a full hour,” said Daj’za Demmings, executive director of the young black professionals.

Wednesday’s feed the community event was the third year for the young black professionals organization. And this year, the group also handed out winter essentials -- hats, gloves and more.

But the number of meals wasn’t the focus for organizers of either event; The focus was about delivering the message to those in need that their neighbors care, and that love will be shown to those in the community that may not find it elsewhere this Thanksgiving.

“There are people that care about you and people that are organizing things to make sure you have what you need,” Demmings said, doubling down on the message of love being sent to the community.

The Dayton Young Black Professionals are planning another community give back event for later this year.

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