Handwritten notes from foster youth cover the white tablecloths that adorn the Sabathani Community Center in South Minneapolis before Thanksgiving each year — time capsules dating back a dozen years in some cases. Beneath plates of roast turkey, fried chicken, herb-speckled mac and cheese, and candied yams, one note reads: “Semaj was here!!! 11-21-19.”
Kids and adults with backgrounds in foster care have been coming to the center for more than a decade to meet with old friends, fill up on a hearty meal and play Uno or Connect 4. They gathered yet again Thursday, at an annual event organized by Connections to Independence, a local nonprofit that helps foster youth between 14 and 24 transition into adulthood.
The menu at this yearly Friendsgiving is always inspired by attendees. This year, for the 13th dinner the group known as C2i has held, they requested soul food as usual. Around 100 people turned out — including some who joined the organization as teenagers and now bring their own kids to the event…