Thousands of people across the county were cooking up Thanksgiving dinner yesterday for someone other than family. In Casa Grande, volunteers dished up hundreds of turkey dinners at the Casa Grande Valley Elks Lodge. The annual dinner is a long-running tradition that brings together the efforts of at least eight different groups.

Other local organizations spreading some joy during the holiday included Hope International in Coolidge which broke last year’s record during its annual Thanksgiving food box giveaway. Thanks to some generous support from various community businesses and organizations, the food pantry was able to give away 500 turkeys and bags of Thanksgiving fixings.

In other news, an Eloy man was shocked with a stun gun after he allegedly grabbed an officer’s gun during a struggle.

And before you start all that Christmas shopping, you might want to consider getting a flu shot. This year’s flu season seems to have started earlier than usual, according to the Pinal County Public Health Services District. Unfortunately, the county has already seen its first pediatric flu death for the season.