Restaurant and car club bring the spirit of Christmas to Beaufort’s less fortunate

Christmas Meals on Classic Wheels, an effort that began 14 years ago when the Beaufort Car and Truck Club delivered 60 meals to less fortunate citizens of Beaufort County continued again on Sunday. And the effort continues to grow: this year, 250 boxed meals were delivered to 66 homes around Beaufort.

“It’s gotten bigger and bigger, this is the biggest one yet,” said Josh Poticha, owner of Bricks on Boundary Bar and Grill in Beaufort, which has donated and prepared the meals for the effort since 2011.

The food preparation -- which includes oven roasting 30 whole turkeys -- began on Friday, and Poticha and his employees worked through the night Saturday to prepare and box the dinners of carved whole turkey, green bean casserole, fried Vidalia onion rings, scratch made mashed potatoes, country dressing, bread, salad, cranberry sauce and fudge brownies.

“It’s a huge meal,” Poticha said, “there’s enough for two people in each box.”

And though it’s a lot of work, it’s worth it, he said. Delivering the meals is “an incredibly powerful experience.”

“These people are waiting, for sure, to be greeted and fed by us. They are so excited and they don’t want to let go. They want to sit down and talk and ... share cheers and enjoy our food.”

The distribution was handled by volunteers from the Beaufort Car and Truck Club, who fanned out across northern Beaufort County, dropping off the boxed meals from St. Helena Island to Yemassee.

On Sunday morning, the car club members, some driving their classic cars and trucks, met at Bricks to finish packing the meals and and pick them up for delivery.

Car club president Rob Hilton said the club finds many of its recipients sources such as the Beaufort County Department of Social Services and Beaufort County Disabilities and Special Needs. This year, he said, the club also got recommendations from the Beaufort County School District. “We talked to social workers and found families with young children who needed some help.” he said.

“It gives everybody a good feeling: the people receiving the meals and those of us who deliver the meals,” he said.

“It rekindles our Christmas spirit.”

This story was originally published December 24, 2017 at 4:15 PM with the headline "Restaurant and car club bring the spirit of Christmas to Beaufort’s less fortunate."