Talk about a Turkey Rama.

Yamhill County's Food Bank was flooded with turkeys this week - hundreds of them - from residents responding to Saturday's front-page article in the News-Register reporting YCAP was facing a serious turkey deficit heading into the final weekend before Thanksgiving.

After issuing its unusual plea to the public, the McMinnville-based food bank found itself with a walk-in freezer piled to the ceiling with 20-pound birds - to the point where it ran out of room and had to press an old three-door freezer into service.

Food Program Coordinator Tricia Harrop said even that was pushing it.

"We had to bar the freezer," she said. "We had so many turkeys, they were falling out of the doors."

On the eve of a holiday season coming in a year of terrible economic trouble, with unemployment up and credit tight, that's just the kind of problem you want to have.

In all, YCAP has taken delivery on 500 turkeys in the last few days. Together, the birds weigh an estimated five tons.

YCAP had staff and volunteers hopping all weekend handling the influx. And the agency found their situation incredibly reaffirming.

"We'd have one turkey come in, then 14," Harrop said. "People went and bought them with their children and had their children bring them in. We had senior citizens, who remembered when they'd been to a community dinner themselves or when their family needed a food box.

"It was so heartwarming. People's generosity was just great."

Relief agencies have seen demand soar this year, with a lot of new clients - people who have either lost their own job or experienced someone else in the family lose theirs. One recent night, the St. Barnabas Soup Kitchen, which depends on YCAP, served more than 200 in a single sitting.

On Monday, the state released figures showing unemployment had leapt from 5.9 percent in September to 7.1 percent in October, and officials are expecting things to get worse before they get better. That represents a double challenge for agencies like YCAP, as it both increases the need and decreases the ability to meet that need.

But in this case, at least, its plea for help was heeded in spades.

The flood of contributions enabled YCAP to prepare 265 food boxes for the holidays, with turkeys left over for food pantries in Carlton, Dayton and Sheridan. Thanks to the outpouring, it also has plenty of turkeys on hand for holiday meals offered by St. Barnabas and the Salvation Army.

The article also alerted some in the community to the fact that YCAP is a resource they can turn to in a time of need. Harrop said it triggered dozens of calls from families wanting to sign up.

Harrop reported, "People are saying, 'I'm embarassed. I've never had to do this before.'" Virtually all new clients had a story to tell about a job loss or some other kind of financial emergency, she said.

Thanksgiving dinner is an important family ritual, Harrop said. When disaster strikes, that ritual looms all the more important. It should not be regarded as a frill to be cut, particularly when there is help available in the community.

Many first-time clients find it difficult to make that initial contact, she said. They don't find it easy working up the courage to take advantage of a community dinner.

But those who do find it a welcoming, affirming experience.

"It's not like what you see on TV," she said. "It's a community dinner where you sit with your family and have a good time. There is no shame in keeping your family happy and healthy."