The Essex County Sheriff’s Office provided meals to the homeless and other families in need on Tuesday.

It was all part of the department’s annual food drive which has been helping the community for more than 30 years.

The department has been collecting items in bulk, including turkeys, trimmings and side dishes. Those items were delivered to local churches, pantries, homeless shelters and schools

They say the goal is to stock the shelves for the coming winter.

"There's a great need out here. Unfortunately, the requests that we get have increased even more so,” says Sheriff Armando Fontura. “We encourage people to make sure they do the best thing, do the right thing and contribute and think of others who may not be as fortunate as you are."

Fontura says that since the program began, the number of food drive stops has increased from six to 31 and spans three towns.