(ABC 6 News) – Thanksgiving came early this year to Mower County as over 3,000 turkeys were handed out earlier at the Hometown Turkey Takeover event at the Mower County Fairgrounds Saturday.

Cars backed up parts of Austin in order to get their Thanksgiving turkey for free starting even earlier than the event’s 9 a.m. start time.

“It was amazing to see. I pulled up at 7 AM, there was already cars here. There’s a lot of excitement both by the participants and the volunteers and we’re just really grateful for everyone’s contribution,” said Gema Alvarado, the Workforce Wellness Facilitator and Co-Lead at the Hometown Foods Security Project.

For some it was a long wait to grab the Thanksgiving dinner staple, but it was all worth it.

“I’ve been here for about two hours so it was definitely great,” said Samantha Kohnert, Mower county resident.

“I was down by Sterling Realty and made my way here,” said Annette Tapp, another Mower County resident.

It’s an event put on by Hormel Foods with Hometown Foods Security Project as a way to give back, with over 200 volunteers from the community helping to make it happen.

“We like challenges. We were absolutely for it, and you know throughout these months, the event has taken fruition, and here we are today having this wonderful event,” Alvarado said.

It’s all in hopes of bringing families together for the holiday.

“If you think about the need in the community and everybody trying to bring their family together. It’s the food that brings the families together, and the turkeys that center the plate for that iconic Thanksgiving feast and we’re so proud to be apart of that,” said Vice President of Hormel Foods, Jeff Baker.

All the leftover turkeys will be given to Channel One Food Bank in Rochester to help others have a meal of their own.