Members of The Oaks Club community in Osprey recently raised $13,000 in seven days to fund meals for Sarasota County firefighters and first responders. The “Gifts of Gratitude” project was inspired by The Oaks Club general manager and COO Jeff Hartigan, who often covers the grocery bill for firefighters when he sees them shopping in Publix. The program will culminate on June 10 with a full turkey feast and all the trimmings at nearby Station 14 prepared by The Oaks Club executive chef James Pampinella, with additional meals being sent to 19 other stations.

“These firefighters and paramedics are looking out for us 24/7, every day of the year,” says Anne Lockie-Meehan, President of The Oaks Club . “This is really the least we can do to show our gratitude for their diligence and to celebrate the live-saving work they do.”

Each station will receive: a 10 lb. Honey Baked half Ham; 4 lbs. of Pulled Pork BBQ from the Rendezvous in Memphis; Cookies from Fireman Dereke’s; Ham Biscuits from Callies of Charleston; Chicago Meatballs from Bartlini’s of Chicago; coffee from The Fire Department Coffee Company; and Popcorn from Garret’s of Chicago. In addition, Station 14 will get a Whole Bone in Ham, 4 slabs of ribs with the pulled pork, ham and blueberry biscuits.

Nearly 200 members of The Oaks Club contributed to the Gifts of Gratitude fund. Some members can even recount first hand encounters with Station 14’s paramedics, whose emergency response area includes The Oaks Club.

Sarasota County employs more than 500 professional firefighters, many of whom are also certified paramedics. Firefighters work 24-hour shifts followed by 48 hours off, cooking meals for themselves and their shift-mates while they are on the job. “Sarasota is such an incredible community, and we’re honored that we get to serve here,” says Sarasota fire chief Michael Regnier. “We couldn’t be more grateful for this show of support from The Oaks Club.”