How to Get a Free Thanksgiving Turkey

As Thanksgiving rolls around, people everywhere have turned to planning their menus for the glorious feast ahead of time. Most foods that families generally prepare for that day are inexpensive enough. Each family has a traditional food that might set their meal apart from the guy next door. But what do you do when the rising cost of turkey has made it nearly impossible to keep a sensible budget when buying the bird? Many areas offer programs that can help your family bring the turkey to the table this Thanksgiving Season.

For absolutely free turkey, inquire within your area about Food Pantries. Food Pantries offer a Thanksgiving basket for the holiday season at no cost to you, and can greatly reduce the amount of money that you spend on your dinner, if any at all. Your local town council, or even the school, could point you in the right direction for being able to sign up to receive a helping hand this year. Keep in mind throughout the year when you have a few spare dollars to contribute to your local Food Pantry and continue to help other families who are less fortunate and can't afford to eat at times due to financial situations.

Check with your church to see if they offer free turkeys for the holidays. Most churches will pool a certain portion of the collections taken in and will fund a certain amount of turkeys. If you do not belong to a church, call a few anyway and see if they offer this service to those who aren't a part of their congregation.

Family assistance programs such as Home Health Nurses, Early Intervention Programs, and Special Needs Aides will be able to let you know if their organization gives out free turkeys to qualifying families. Even if they don't have a program in place, you may be able to inquire and get a helping hand.

Shop at places that offer a free turkey when you spend "x" amount on groceries through their store. Price Chopper, in particular, offers this incentive each year. Buy doing your other holiday shopping with their store, and being a card holding member, you can accrue money spent within a set time frame that can be used for a free turkey. Many people are able to receive more than one free turkey in the allotted time frame with just their regular home shopping items.

A lot of employers offer a certificate for a free turkey as a Thanksgiving gift to their employees. Some places even have the turkeys brought in on a certain day and will hold them until your shift is done. Ask at your Human Resources personnel to see if they participate in free turkeys through various means (gift certificates and such).

If all else fails, there are still ways to possibly get your hands on a free bird (for mostly free). If someone in your family has a hunting license that qualifies turkeys under what they can hunt, it might be something to look into. Aside from it being a big feathery mess (and certainly not for the feint of heart), you may be able to land a pretty big (and fresh!) bird to take the center stage at your Thanksgiving table.

Turkey Raffles and Turkey Shoots (not shooting turkeys, but targets, and the closest to the center is the winner) are common ways to land a bird. Each of these options have a fee associated with them though, and you are not guaranteed a turkey. If you like to shoot "big guns" or kick back and socialize at a raffle event, then find one near you and check it out.

Many towns host weekly Bingo games. When Thanksgiving nears, most of them will offer a Turkey to the winner of a certain game. This is by no means cheap, Bingo games are slightly costly to get into, and again, there is no guarantee that you will win one. But if you enjoy Bingo, and are looking to get in on the action, check the local game spots near you.

When it comes straight down to it, some people just can't afford the holiday dinner at all. If this is your situation, ask a family member if they would mind going halves with you on the dinner and then decide where to host it. Offer your time to help with food preparation and other tasks that may be done before the season.

With today's economy getting harder to budget on, a lot of families may go without this holiday season because they can't afford the meal. Rising food costs, gas prices, and rising utility costs are making it harder on everyone. Before throwing up your hands entirely, take the time to check out these valuable resources and find out if you qualify.