I spent Thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle's house with my seven cousins and their 700 kids. I drank at least two bottles of red and had at least three servings of mashed potatoes. It was great! I didn't have to clean or cook or even stand for that long. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner cannot relate.
Affleck and Garner spent Thursday volunteering at The Midnight Mission's annual Thanksgiving Street Fair in downtown Los Angeles. Their three kids — Violet Anne, 18, Seraphina Rose, 15, and Samuel, 12 — were also there, with a source telling People, “They truly enjoy giving back to their community and cherishing quality time together as a family." That is very admirable!
I was initially tempted to tease Ben for volunteering on the most obvious volunteer day of the year, but he's worked with them for a long time, so never mind. However, anyone who only volunteers on Thanksgiving Day does have the vibe of that How I Met Your Mother episode, where Ted and Robin go to a homeless shelter to help out but get turned away. "Can you ever really have enough unpaid help?" Ted asks. "On the biggest volunteer day of the year?" the head volunteer says. "Yeah, you can."
The organization, which served over 2,000 people on Thursday, posted a photo of Garner and Affleck on Instagram, writing, "Thank you, Ben and Jennifer, for serving meals and sharing smiles on this special day. Your compassion reminds us all of the true meaning of Thanksgiving—coming together to support one another."
The Midnight Mission was founded in 1914 and offers a range of programs to those in need, from education to recovery to workforce development. “It’s easy to sort of throw up your hands and say there’s nothing you can do,” Affleck told People in 2020. “But the truth is there are people who want to make their lives better, who are struggling, who need help and who you can benefit by even doing a little bit, giving a little bit of money or a little bit of time. It’s just a really powerful thing to do to be able to connect with people.”
Earlier this week, another "insider" told People that Ben is "very happy with life" and that he "enjoys working." Nice!
Meanwhile, Jennifer Lopez, if you were curious, had a lovely Thanksgiving brunch with friends on Wednesday, according to the tabloids. And on Thursday, she Instagrammed herself with a giant turkey, writing, "I hope everybody had a beautiful and Happy Thanksgiving. I am so incredibly grateful for all of you." She was notably not volunteering!
