BATON ROUGE - Councilman Anthony B. Kenney Jr. helped District 2 families prepare for the holiday season with a day of food, supplies and community support.

Sunday's Community Harvest event was hosted at the Jewel Newman Community Center. Volunteers gave out hot meals, free clothing, baby items and other essentials to residents in attendance. 

Families received free hams and nonperishable food items, while volunteers worked throughout the day to make sure everyone left with what they needed.

Many attendees said the help could not have come at a better time, especially with rising costs hitting local households.

Kenney said the event is personal to him. 

"I'm from this very same community and I went to school here. I was born not too far from this center," Kenney said. "And so we wanted to make sure we give some holiday spirit to the people in the community and show that their elected official leaders care about them each and every day."

Kenney said his goal is to ensure that no one in the community goes without food during this holiday season. He plans to continue hosting events like the Community Harvest to provide consistent support and resources for families throughout the year.