Club Q’s decade-long traditional Thanksgiving dinner continues thanks to locals

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)--Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church is hosting the 10-year traditional 'Club Q' thanksgiving dinner. After Saturday's mass shooting, club owners were unsure whether it would be held.  However, thanks to the efforts of church leaders, the annual event is happening this Thanksgiving day.

Leaders from the LGBTQ community say they're very grateful the church was able to host the annual Thanksgiving dinner. They say after everything that's happened in our community, right now is the time to be together. 

"There's been a lot of people in Colorado Springs because of what happened this week that think that they need to be leaving, they need to go somewhere else. But that is not the case. Colorado Springs is a place for all," said Joseph Shelton, President of the United Court of The Pikes Peak Empire.  

Making sure everyone has a seat at the table. That's been the goal for the past 10 years for leaders at Club Q and United Court of the Pikes Peak Empire. 

"In years past, we cooked everything and we cooked everything in the kitchen at Club Q or at our personal homes and took it to the bar, had it all set up and we did all the purchasing with our own money. We did everything that we could," Shelton said.  

After Saturday's mass shooting, community leaders all throughout the state decided to set up and make sure the annual Thanksgiving tradition would continue, despite the horrendous event. 

"When this event came around, we didn't know how we were going to do it just yet," Shelton added.

Thanks to Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church and the 18 other food and drinks donors, they now have more than they could ever ask for.   

"Whether it's cookies, whether volunteers, food, or drink. A bunch of businesses have come together and just donated something to help us out, and again I never expected it to be that much," Shelton said.

The team is now expecting about 175 people to attend the annual Thanksgiving dinner. They say this year will be the biggest one yet.

"So many people are coming together because they care about this community. They care about what's happening to this community. They're not looking at it as black, white, gay, straight, they're looking at it as this is my community," Shelton said.  

The Thanksgiving dinner will end at 8 p.m.