Neil Chauhan, owner of Wurtsboro G-Mart, is holding his third annual Thanksgiving dollar-match donation drive, which began during the last week of October and runs until November 26.

Chauhan said his grocery wholesaler, Bozzuto’s Inc., partners with the Hometown Foundation, making the donation drive possible. Customers at Wurtsboro G-Mart can choose to donate $1, $2, $5 or more by scanning a tag at the register.

Half of the proceeds go to local food pantries, while the other half is donated to St. Joseph’s Church in Wurtsboro to support its annual Thanksgiving dinner and food pantry. The dinner will be held on Thanksgiving Day from 2 to 5 p.m. at St. Joseph’s Hall.

“Especially now with everything that’s going on, people either are financially strapped or having a hard time making ends meet,” Chauhan said of food insecurity in Wurtsboro. “In this area in particular, there’s not much around here, so you have to go out to all the bigger towns.”

Charles Corrigan, who organizes St. Joseph’s Thanksgiving dinner with the help of friends and family, said he started the tradition in 2008 after his mother-in-law suggested the idea. Corrigan said the meal is particularly important for elderly Wurtsboro residents who may have difficulty accessing government benefits such as SNAP.

“There's a lot of elderly people that go without meals, and that has nothing to do with the economy today. That's been as long as I've been doing this,” Corrigan said. “They're home bound. So who's there to really take care of them?”

Corrigan described organizing the Thanksgiving dinner as an intensive process that requires hours of shopping, preparation and cooking. Following Hurricane Sandy, 724 people attended the dinner. On another occasion, organizers even hosted a doctor from Manhattan whose car broke down while he was traveling to Canada.

According to Corrigan, the Thanksgiving dinner would not be possible without donations and support from community partners such as Chauhan.

“G-Mart is always involved. Since the new ownership with G-Mart, Neil is fantastic with me,” Corrigan said. “Last year, because the match program didn't make what it was supposed to, Neil put in money himself.”

In addition to the annual donation drive, Chauhan collects nonperishable food donations at his store throughout the year for St. Joseph’s Church. Church representatives pick up the donations once a week.