Category: News
Slender Man attacker won’t fight extradition to Wisconsin after fleeing group home
MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin woman who won release from a mental institution after almost killing her sixth grade classmate in the name of horror villain Slender Man only to flee the state weeks later won’t fight extradition from Illinois.
Morgan Geyser agreed not to contest her transfer from jail in Cook County, Illinois, to Wisconsin during a hearing Tuesday, a court spokesperson said. Wisconsin authorities now have 30 days to pick her up.
Wisconsin health officials could revoke Geyser’s conditional release and send her back to the facility where she spent most of the past eight years. She also could face new charges in connection with her escape.
Escape to Illinois
According to police, Geyser cut off her GPS monitoring bracelet on Saturday evening and fled her Madison group home with a 43-year-old companion. Police found them Sunday evening sleeping on a sidewalk outside a truck stop in Posen, Illinois, a village of 5,300 people about 25 miles south of Chicago, and arrested them.
Police have identified Geyser’s friend as male, but Geyser can be heard on officers’ body camera footage during their arrests saying that the individual is transgender and refers to the person as “she.”
Her friend has been charged with trespassing and obstruction, but The Associated Press isn’t naming the companion because the person hasn’t been charged with aiding Geyser’s escape. The AP’s attempts to contact that person have been unsuccessful.
The companion did call WKOW-TV on Monday, however, saying the two became friends at church and had seen each other daily for the past month. Geyser decided to flee because she was afraid her group home would no longer allow them to see each other, the person said.
“She ran because of me,” the friend told the television station.
‘You’re not wanted for murder, right?’
Geyser and her companion took a bus overnight into Illinois, the friend said. The Posen officers’ body camera footage shows Geyser and her friend shivering in the cold outside the truck stop as officers try to ascertain their names and where they’re from. Geyser does most of the talking while her friend gathers their belongings and places them in a backpack, saying only “south” when asked where they’re from and giving officers a fake name. Her companion initially refused to give a name.
As officers threaten to arrest them, Geyser clutches a stuffed dog toy and clings to her companion’s arm. When officers separate them, she insists that her friend doesn’t know Geyser’s name or what she’s done.
When Geyser refuses to give her real name, an officer asks her: “You’re not wanted for murder, right?”
Geyser repeatedly begs the officers to let her companion go. Pressed by officers, Geyser says: “I did something really wrong.”
Geyser finally writes her real name on an officer’s notepad. As they’re running her for warrants, she tries to go to her friend, but an officer pushes her back.
“Let me say goodbye, please,” Geyser says. “I’ll never see her again.”
After they’re led into squad cars, one of the officers remarks: “I hope she didn’t commit a homicide. The way she’s talking, she’s saying it’s really, really bad.”
The footage shows another officer discovering a notebook in the couple’s bags entitled “Homeless Couples Guidebook.”
Companion: Geyser trying to move beyond Slender Man attack
Geyser’s friend told WKOW that they understand each other and communicate in a “really good, healthy way” and she had explained her past.
“I was like, ‘I don’t hate you. I think you’re clearly not that person anymore. You’re trying very hard to move away from it. That much is obvious,’” the companion said, adding later that Geyser was going to flee the group home with or without the friend and the person chose to go with her because Geyser wasn’t going to make it on her own.
Stabbing meant to please horror character
Geyser and her friend, Anissa Weier, lured one of their classmates, Payton Leutner, to a Waukesha park in 2014. Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times, narrowly missing her heart, while Weier cheered her on. All three girls were 12 years old at the time. Leutner barely survived.
Geyser and Weier later told investigators they attacked Leutner in hopes of impressing Slender Man and becoming his servants. They said they were afraid Slender Man would hurt their families if they didn’t carry out the attack.
Slender Man was created online by Eric Knudson in 2009 as a mysterious figure photo-edited into everyday images of children at play. He grew into a popular boogeyman, appearing in video games, online stories and a 2018 movie.
Both Geyser and Weier were ultimately committed to a state mental institution — Geyser for 40 years and Weier for 25. Wisconsin law allows people committed to state institutions to petition for release. Weier earned conditional release in 2021. Geyser, now 23, won conditional release this past September after four requests and was placed in the group home.
Associated Press reporter Scott Bauer contributed to this report.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/25/slender-man-attacker/
El papa dice que Acción de Gracias es una “hermosa fiesta” que une a todos
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italia (AP) — El papa León XIV dijo el martes que el Día de Acción de Gracias es una “hermosa fiesta” que une tanto a creyentes como a no creyentes, al emitir un mensaje de agradecimiento previo a la festividad en Estados Unidos.
León dijo estar agradecido por muchas cosas e instó a todos a reconocer los dones que han recibido. “En primer lugar, el don de la vida. El don de la fe. El don de la unidad”, manifestó.
El pontífice respondía a las preguntas de los periodistas la noche del martes al salir de Castel Gandolfo, donde va los lunes y martes para descansar y jugar al tenis.
Describió el Día de Acción de Gracias como “esta hermosa fiesta que tenemos en Estados Unidos, que une a todas las personas, personas de diferentes credos, personas que quizás no tienen el don de la fe”, para dar gracias a alguien.
León pasará su primer Día de Acción de Gracias como papa en Turquía en su primer viaje al extranjero.
___
La cobertura de temas religiosos de The Associated Press recibe apoyo a través de la colaboración de la AP con The Conversation US, con financiación de Lilly Endowment Inc. La AP es la única responsable de este contenido.
___
Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
Antifa Whistleblower: “They Call You Fascist So They Can Kill You”
Antifa Whistleblower: “They Call You Fascist So They Can Kill You”
Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,
A former Antifa foot soldier has ripped the mask off the far-left’s violent underbelly, revealing how the self-styled “anti-fascists” weaponise slurs not to fight tyranny, but to justify murder—labelling foes “fascists” as a license to “dehumanise” and assault them without remorse.
The interview from Steven Edginton’s documentary “‘They’re Getting Ready for War’: Ex-Antifa Reveals Inside the Far-Left,” lays bare Antifa’s radicalisation pipeline: a toxic brew of bullying, arming up, and ISIS-style self-justification that’s morphed from street theater to outright terror prep.
‘Andrew’, who ditched the extremist group after witnessing their descent into “self-radicalisation,” outlined the fascist slur’s lethal intent: “They don’t kill you because you’re a fascist, they call you a fascist so they can kill you.”
🚨 FORMER MEMBER OF ANTIFA: “They don’t kill you because you’re a fascist…”
“…they call you a fascist SO they can kill you.” 💯
“How is this different than a group like ISIS?”
That’s how it works. The Left is violent.
Antifa must be quashed.pic.twitter.com/bnNV4VfcgK
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 24, 2025
He further unpacked the psychology: “It is like calling a Nazi or a Fascist as a way to just dehumanise them, so you can do whatever to them. You could assault them. It’s funny to them. They laugh about it.”
“How is this different than a group like ISIS?” The ex-member pondered.
He also confirmed a shift in targets, noting “Originally they were trying to bully and threaten like what they would consider right wing extremists like Proud Boys or Christian Nationalists that show up to protest or events… That’s not the target anymore. Now, the target is anyone that doesn’t agree with them.”
Andrew’s wake-up call came amid casual chats turning apocalyptic, as he explained that “Socially when I’m not at a meeting, I’m just hanging out with people I know, more and more they talk about acts of violence. They talk about guns or going to gun ranges. And it scares me.”
“They feel as though their under threat. Well, we’re gonna be genocided or put in prison or Nazis have taken over America. So we have to act now to stop it,” he continued, urging that “They’re getting ready for war.”
GB News’ Edginton, in the full 30-minute special, traces Antifa’s arc from 2020’s Portland infernos—where Andrew admits “we were catching up”—to today’s “bunker” mindset. Edginton confronts the ideology’s core rot.
Antifa claims to be ‘anti-fascist’ but their ideology is anti-civilisation:
As we previously highlighted, many members of the far left death cult, also hold everyday jobs, including allegedly as teachers and lawyers.
President Trump announced on Sept. 17 the designation of the militant far-left network as a terrorist organisation, calling for investigations into its financial backers.
Democrats continue to claim that Antifa doesn’t even exist:
Or that their riots are all staged by the Trump Administration to justify a crackdown:
Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.
Tyler Durden
Tue, 11/25/2025 – 16:20
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/antifa-whistleblower-they-call-you-fascist-so-they-can-kill-you
Medias Rojas adquieren al derecho Sonny Gray de los Cardenales
Por JIMMY GOLEN
BOSTON (AP) — Los Medias Rojas de Boston adquirieron el martes al lanzador derecho de 36 años Sonny Gray, tres veces elegido al Juego de Estrellas, de los Cardenales de San Luis a cambio del derecho Richard Fitts y un prospecto.
El Director de Operaciones de los Medias Rojas, Craig Breslow, había manifestado que añadir unabridor detrás del as Garrett Crochet era uno de los objetivos del equipo para la temporada baja. Gray les ofrece una opción confiable que podría aliviar parte de la presión del resto de la rotación.
Gray tuvo un récord de 14-8 con una efectividad de 4.28 para los Cardenales la temporada pasada, ponchando a 201 bateadores y otorgando 38 bases por bolas en 32 aperturas, la mejor tasa en la Liga Nacional. Es uno de los cinco lanzadores que ha registrado al menos 200 ponches en cada una de las últimas dos temporadas.
En una carrera de 13 años con cinco equipos, tiene récord de 125-102 con una efectividad de 3.58 y tres apariciones en el Juego de Estrellas.
Fitts, quien cumplirá 26 años el próximo mes, tuvo un récord de 2-4 con una efectividad de 5.00 como novato en Boston la temporada pasada. Los Cardenales también adquirirán al zurdo de 22 años Brandon Clarke, una selección de quinta ronda del draft que solo ha lanzado en Clase A y está clasificado como el prospecto número cinco en el sistema de los Red Sox por MLB.com, y un jugador a ser nombrado o dinero en efectivo.
A Gray se le habían garantizado 40 millones de dólares para las próximas dos temporadas: 35 millones para 2026 y una opción de compra de cinco millones de una opción de equipo de 30 millones para 2027. Su contrato fue modificado para garantizarle 41 millones de dólares: un salario de 31 millones para el próximo año y una opción mutua de 30 millones para 2027 con una opción de compra de 10 millones.
___
El escritor de deportes de AP David Skretta en Kansas City, Missouri, contribuyó a este informe.
___
Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes
Aurora roofing company VP called Black worker ‘slave,’ EEOC lawsuit alleges
A vice president for an Aurora roofing company harassed Black and female employees by subjecting them to racial slurs and explicit comments about their bodies, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged in a lawsuit filed Friday.
The EEOC sued Rosemont-based Tecta America and its Aurora-based subsidiary Anthony Roofing in federal court in Chicago after failing to reach a pre-litigation settlement with the companies.
The lawsuit alleged a vice president for Anthony Roofing “routinely” called a Black employee his “slave,” among other offensive racial remarks.
The same executive regularly made sexually explicit comments about female employees, such as by asking one woman if she was “pregnant or just fat,” the EEOC alleged.
The vice president in question, who had hiring and firing power at the company, also suggested that “women did not have a place in the office,” the complaint alleged.
But harassment at the company was not limited to the vice president, according to the EEOC. Supervisory and nonsupervisory employees alike “also routinely engaged in racial harassment of Black employees,” the lawsuit alleged, including by calling Black employees “boy.”
Employees reported the racial and sexual harassment to the company’s human resources department, which failed to take action, the complaint alleged.
Company representatives allegedly responded to harassment complaints dismissively, including by telling one worker that “nothing could be done,” and by warning them not to make complaints to outside agencies, according to the complaint. One worker who reported the alleged racial harassment ended up resigning after the company failed to address it, according to the EEOC.
The lawsuit, which alleges violations of the Civil Rights Act, seeks back pay for the worker who resigned and punitive damages for those subjected to harassment.
Anthony Roofing and Tecta did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday. A status hearing in the case is set in February.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/25/eeoc-lawsuit-aurora-roofing-company/
Thanksgiving Snow Depth Across America Could Be Most In Decade
Thanksgiving Snow Depth Across America Could Be Most In Decade
Thanksgiving week has arrived, and the Federal Aviation Administration is bracing for the busiest travel period in 15 years. This year, tens of millions of Americans could face unusual weather: snow and bitter cold blanket parts of the Lower 48 as families gather to carve the turkey.
“For parts of the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Michigan, Thanksgiving snow depth this year could be greatest in more than a decade,” meteorologist Ben Noll wrote on X. “Up to around two feet of snow may fall in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and northern Wisconsin, as strong winds cause blizzard-like conditions!”
Noll asked: “Can you recall a Thanksgiving when there was snow on the ground in your area?”
He highlighted a map showing the Thanksgiving with the deepest snow depth by decade, noting that about 73% of the U.S. had the snowiest Thanksgiving before 2000.
Can you recall a Thanksgiving when there was snow on the ground in your area? ❄️ 🦃
This map shows the decade that featured the Thanksgiving with the deepest snow depth.
For about 73 percent of the United States, the snowiest Thanksgiving occurred before the year 2000. pic.twitter.com/1PFT3CiDei
— Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) November 25, 2025
Latest weather report:
Stratospheric Warming Sparks Goldman Warning Of Looming U.S. Polar Vortex
“Winter Comes In Like A Lion”: Meteorologists Warn Of Incoming Cold Blast
While millions of Americans are splitting and stacking firewood, filling their heating-oil tanks, and even receiving shipments of rice or chestnut coal for their stoves, the irrelevant globalist elite have been in Brazil -warm this time of year – lecturing the world about global warming. Their warnings come even as Bill Gates has now admitted the climate-crisis narrative was fake news.
And just like that:
Key Ocean Current Faltering, Raising Risk Of “Ice Age”-Like Cooling
Just wait until global elites who lied with statistics about the climate crisis begin touting how their Paris Agreement saved the world.
COP30 Desperately Needed A Win, So It Rewrote The Past pic.twitter.com/jTpp089fT8
— Electroverse (@Electroversenet) November 25, 2025
Remember that “climate crisis” narrative was propaganda to loot the Treasury with climate spending (recall “Gold Bars off the Titanic” bombshell report).
The climate-crisis narrative was never about the actual environment at all, but about seizing control, looting government coffers, and imposing taxation and climate policies that de-growthed the West, while China built record amounts of coal power plants and expanded its manufacturing base.
Tyler Durden
Tue, 11/25/2025 – 15:45
https://www.zerohedge.com/weather/thanksgiving-snow-depth-across-america-could-be-most-decade
Former Portage Mayor James Snyder continues to push for new trial on IRS conviction
Former Portage Mayor James Snyder said he “has never received a fair trial” in his continued push for a new trial on an IRS charge, according to court filings.
Snyder asked for a new trial on his conviction for defrauding the IRS in federal court filings late last month. Federal prosecutors, in their response, said his request is untimely and without merit.
This is the latest chapter in a saga that began nine years ago when Snyder was indicted on one count of defrauding the IRS and two counts of bribery, one involving towing contracts and the other involving garbage trucks.
A jury in U.S. District Court in Hammond found Snyder not guilty on the charge involving the towing contract, and convicted him twice on the garbage truck charge, a case that made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which deemed in June of last year that the $13,000 payment Snyder received over a garbage truck contract was a gratuity, not a bribe, because the payment came after the contract and not before. The case was remanded to the lower courts.
A jury convicted Snyder on the IRS charge, which involved his personal business and not his duties as mayor at the time, and that conviction had remained unchallenged.
Snyder was scheduled to go to trial for a third time on the charge involving the garbage truck contract, but prosecutors have said they would like to sentence Snyder for obstructing the IRS and forgo a third trial on his bribery charge.
Snyder, awaiting sentencing on the IRS conviction, which has been repeatedly pushed back, argued in an Oct. 31 filing that he wanted a new trial on the IRS charge because the information presented on the bribery charges could have improperly swayed the jury.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office argues that Snyder’s request “is both untimely and meritless.”
“Now, after the parties agreed to proceed to sentencing on the tax count and have begun their sentencing advocacy before this Court, defendant seeks leave for additional motion practice to challenge his 2019 conviction,” prosecutors said in their filing. “Defendant wants this Court to grant the extraordinary remedy of overturning a jury’s verdict setting the case for multiple new trials.”
Snyder “failed to raise the issue of misjoinder or severance (of the charges) before trial in 2019,” prosecutors said.
He also made a “strategic decision” to go to trial on all of the counts rather than arguing at the time for the counts to be separated for trial, prosecutors said. “Defendant thus waived any claim to improper joinder by failing to make this argument before trial,” prosecutors said.
In response, Snyder filed a motion Friday requesting the court hear his motion for a new trial. Snyder’s motion states that prosecutors “charged him with bribery for conduct that ‘any fair reader’” of the law “would be left with a reasonable doubt” if a crime was committed.
“The result was a trial that was infected with constitutional error. And now that the Government has lost before the Supreme Court, it wants to use the conviction on (the IRS charge)…as a backdoor opportunity to bring in evidence of the overturned (bribery charge) instead of allowing him what he has never received – a fair trial on the tax count.”
While prosecutors stated that “the parties agreed to proceed to sentencing on the tax count,” Snyder’s lawyer wrote he never agreed to that.
“Mr. Snyder only agreed that the interests of justice call for an end to this prosecution,” his attorney wrote. “He specifically objected to the Government’s proposed use of unproven bribery allegations to enhance his sentence on the tax count. He never agreed to waive his constitutional right to a fair trial on the tax count, nor should he be compelled to do so.”
Snyder, a Republican, was first elected mayor in 2011 and reelected in 2015, a term cut short by his federal conviction in February 2019.
Snyder received a sentence of 21 months in prison for the bribery and IRS convictions and a year on supervised release from U.S. District Court Judge Matthew F. Kennelly of the Northern District of Illinois.
Snyder successfully argued that the start of his sentence should be postponed until his bid to have the Supreme Court hear his case was complete.
akukulka@post-trib.com
Milei exhibe camiseta de Estudiantes durante bilateral con Israel en medio de pelea con AFA
BUENOS AIRES (AP) — El presidente argentino Javier Milei aprovechó la visita de un alto funcionario de su aliado Israel para tomar partido a favor del equipo que se ha convertido en un símbolo de resistencia contra la conducción de la Asociación del Fútbol Argentino (AFA), con la cual está enfrentado.
Milei recibió este martes al canciller israelí Gideon Sa’ar en su despacho de la sede de gobierno con un llamativo detalle: la camiseta de Estudiantes La Plata apoyada sobre el sillón presidencial, según una fotografía difundida por la propia oficina de prensa de la presidencia argentina.
La anécdota sería algo menor en una reunión de alta relevancia política, si no fuera que con ese gesto el mandatario expresó abiertamente su apoyo al club platense en la guerra abierta que mantiene contra AFA por negarse a reconocer a Rosario Central como flamante campeón de la Liga 2025, un trofeo inventado por la entidad la semana pasada para reconocer al club que más puntos suma durante el año.
Milei, arquero en su juventud y que se declara hincha de Boca Juniors, es un feroz crítico del presidente de AFA, Claudio Tapia, por su negativa a autorizar el ingreso de las sociedades anónimas deportivas (SAD) al fútbol argentino, en el cual los clubes se rigen bajo la modalidad de asociaciones civiles sin fines de lucro.
Apenas asumió en 2023, Milei firmó un decreto que autorizaba a los clubes a convertirse en SAD. Sin embargo, la AFA recurrió a la justicia y dejó sin efecto la medida presidencial.
Milei ahora vuelve a cargar contra AFA justo en momentos en que Tapia es objeto de duros cuestionamientos por los cambios constantes en los formatos de los torneos y el bajo nivel de los arbitrajes.
En una medida insólita y desprolija, AFA declaró el jueves pasado al Central de Ángel Di María campeón de la Liga 2025 por haber sumado más puntos en la tabla anual que define la clasificación a copas internacionales y los descensos de categoría. Si bien es un trofeo oficial, tiene poco valor deportivo puesto que el torneo Clausura todavía está en marcha.
Estudiantes, presidido por el exfutbolista Juan Sebastián Verón, fue el único equipo que alzó la voz para rechazar la controvertida decisión y denunció que la medida no se sometió a votación, como determinan los reglamentos. No conforme con ello, sus jugadores se pusieron de espaldas al flamante campeón en el tradicional pasillo cuando se enfrentaron el domingo por los octavos de final de la liga, un gesto que no registra antecedentes en el fútbol argentino.
El Pincha finalmente se impuso 1-0 y se clasificó a los cuartos de final.
AFA anunció el lunes que le abrió un expediente disciplinario a Estudiantes por no cumplir con el tradicional pasilló a los campeones. La sanción puede ser deportiva o económica.
Trump Plans To Hold Talks With Venezuela’s Maduro: Report
Trump Plans To Hold Talks With Venezuela’s Maduro: Report
Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,
President Trump has told his advisers that he’s planning to speak directly with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Axios reported on Monday, citing administration officials.
While the Trump administration has continued to build up its forces in the Caribbean, bomb boats in the region, and leak information to the media that suggests it’s preparing a regime change operation in Venezuela, Trump has signaled in recent weeks that he’s open to diplomacy with Maduro’s government after previously cutting off talks. “I see a diplomatic solution as being very likely,” one Trump adviser told Axios.
But it’s unclear what sort of deal Trump would be satisfied with that doesn’t involve Maduro voluntarily stepping down from power, something the Venezuelan leader is very unlikely to do.
Maduro has reportedly already offered a deal that would give US companies access to his country’s vast natural resources and reduce ties with China, Russia, and Iran, but the administration rejected it. The Venezuelan government has also continued to cooperate with the US on deportations of Venezuelan nationals.
Sources told Axios that Trump’s openness to talks with Maduro suggests that missile strikes on Venezuela aren’t imminent, but said attacks on alleged drug-running boats in the region would continue.
“Nobody is planning to go in and shoot him or snatch [Maduro] — at this point. I wouldn’t say never, but that’s not the plan right now,” one official said.
Another US official also described Trump as a “hawk” on Venezuela, disputing the idea that the US is only escalating in the region because of Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “The hawk in Venezuela is Donald Trump, followed by [White House Deputy Chief of Staff] Stephen Miller, followed by Marco Rubio,” the official said.
The report came the same day that the State Department provided the administration with a pretext for attacking Venezuela by designating the so-called Cartel of the Suns, a group that doesn’t actually exist, a “Foreign Terrorist Organization.”
Tyler Durden
Tue, 11/25/2025 – 15:25
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/trump-plans-hold-talks-venezuelas-maduro-report
‘Warms my heart’: Gary Thanksgiving meal giveaway helps 1,000 residents
Since about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, Louise Hall sat in her car with her coffee, waiting for her Thanksgiving meal.
Not long after 11 a.m., she received a turkey and fresh vegetables.
“I don’t mind waiting,” Hall, a Gary resident, said while in line. “It’s a blessing. It’s truly a blessing, and I wouldn’t be here today if I didn’t need it.”
Hall was one of the 1,000 Gary residents who participated in the city’s annual Thanksgiving meal giveaway, a partnership between Mayor Eddie Melton’s administration and Faith CDC. Through the giveaway, Gary residents receive fresh vegetables and either a turkey or ham.
“It makes me really proud to see everyone helping out here,” Hall said. “Everyone is just working together, and it really makes a difference, and it makes everything click. It’s great.”
JC Straughter, another Gary resident, participated in the meal giveaway. He got in line around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday.
Volunteers Jennifer Alvarez, Pinkie Brooks-Jones and Micka Fears load vegetables into the trunk of a car during the Thanksgiving turkey and ham giveaway at the U.S. Steelyard in Gary, Indiana, Tuesday, November 25, 2025. Volunteers gave away around 1,000 dinners during the event. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
This was Straughter’s first year participating, but he has plans to return if the partnership continues. Straughter said he’s proud to see his fellow Gary residents helping each other.
“It’s a great thing to do,” Straughter said. “It’s helping a lot of us out.”
The earliest giveaway recipient arrived at about 5 a.m., volunteers said.
Freida Graves, director of Food is Medicine for Faith CDC, was in charge of coordinating the annual meal giveaway. Tickets were given to Gary residents throughout the city on Nov. 5, Graves said, and residents stayed in their cars while waiting and receiving meals.
“We tried to bring it all over the city and make it easily accessible for people,” Graves said. “Right now, this is just about community service, and we’re giving back as best as we can.”
Gary Fire Department Lt. Thomas Golden smiles while carrying hams to be distributed during the Thanksgiving turkey and ham giveaway at the U.S. Steelyard in Gary, Indiana, Tuesday, November 25, 2025. Volunteers gave away around 1,000 dinners during the event. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
This year, as the future of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Plan benefits are unsteady, Graves believes it’s even more important for the city and Faith CDC to work together.
“People are having a hard time, just with the economy, paying bills, buying groceries and all kinds of things,” she said. “Not only is it important to do it today, but it’s important to do this and give back all year long.”
Melton agreed with Graves’ sentiments and said he was proud to see members of his administration and community volunteering on Tuesday. The meal giveaway had about 150 volunteers.
WNBA star and Gary native Dana Evens waits for a car during the Thanksgiving turkey and ham giveaway at the U.S. Steelyard in Gary, Indiana, Tuesday, November 25, 2025. Volunteers gave away around 1,000 dinners during the event. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
Food insecurity is a real and present issue, Melton said, and he believes that the freeze in SNAP benefits showed that. For Melton, that made participating in the food drive even more important.
“It really resonated with me and reminded me as a leader that we can’t get ourselves caught in another predicament where we’re vulnerable,” Melton said. “What are we going to do on the local level to sustain this? That’s something we’re trying to figure out.”
Melton’s administration enjoys working with Faith CDC on the food drive, he said, and he thinks it’s important to work with an organization that helps provide fresh, healthy foods to residents.
“This just warms my heart,” Melton said. “As long as we show love to each other and help lift ourselves up, I think everything is going to be OK.”
Volunteer Marche Thomas uses pompoms to direct cars during the Thanksgiving turkey and ham giveaway at the U.S. Steelyard in Gary, Indiana, Tuesday, November 25, 2025. Volunteers gave away around 1,000 dinners during the event. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
Gary residents Zina Litt, Debra Cooper and Alisia Green all volunteered during Tuesday’s meal giveaway. Tuesday was Litt and Green’s first year volunteering, but Cooper said she had helped one other time.
“It’s wonderful,” Cooper said. “It’s so good to be out here and to see so many other people helping and smiling.”
The women said they were excited to be volunteering, and they were proud to see other community members helping, including Melton and WNBA player Dana Evans.
“I love it,” Green said. “I love Gary, and I’m blessed to serve our community.”
mwilkins@chicagotribune.com
