Peters offers meals to those in need

Peters Funeral Home held a meal giveaway recently that treated residents to a full barbecue meal, courtesy of Brooklyn Barbecue of Bakersfield.

Rick Woody of Peters Funeral Home said that they decided to hold the event to help out the communities who have been good to them through the years.

"Times are tough right now. With the virus situation, people having trouble with their job situations and a lot who haven't got their anticipated stimulus check yet, it seemed the right thing to do," Woody said.

The whole family was on hand to help out at the event, from Rick and Ruby Woody to Cheryl Woody and the patriarch of the group, Clarence Peters. "We are so blessed to be able to do something like this. This community has been so good to us; we are just happy to be able to give back a little," the elder Peters said.

Cars lined up in the alley behind the funeral home and were led to the side entrance of the facility, where the drive-thru service was set up. Each vehicle was given a bag with two meals in it.

The only requirement was to show an ID that they resided in either Shafter or Wasco.

"We weren't putting anyone on a mailing list or anything, we just wanted to make sure that those picking up the meals were a member of our communities," Rick Woody said.

The staff on hand were in masks and gloves for safety, and they encouraged those picking up the food to wear masks. Anyone entering the building, either with the media or the volunteer staff, were also required to don masks and gloves to abide by the guidelines for the event.

At the end of the day, over 800 meals were given out.

John Steeber, owner of Brooklyn Barbecue, 3015 Calloway Drive in Bakersfield, didn't hesitate when contacted by Woody to be a part of this event.

"We are blessed to be a part of this to help out the community in its time of need," Steeber said.