Turkey on the Table, Jam on the Freeways

Orange County’s holiday season began Thursday with the traditional Thanksgiving trimmings of bad traffic and gastronomic indulgence--but also with a good dose of generosity.

In Anaheim, Frank Garcia and his family were busy feeding the homeless, the poor and the plain lonely at their restaurant, La Casa Garcia.

The annual event drew more than 12,000 people this year, and included 200 pies baked and donated by Orange County sheriff’s deputies.

“We have to share with people who are experiencing hard times,” Garcia said. “We have a lot of motel families [who] have nowhere to go.”

Garcia’s own family came to the United States from Mexico when he was a child. His father worked at a gas station and the family had little money. But despite their poverty, Garcia’s mother would share Thanksgiving dinners with neighbors who had less. “I’ll never forget that,” Garcia said.

The Thanksgiving dinner, in its 12th year, has become a tradition for many, said volunteer Lorraine Enriquez, 43, of Garden Grove.

“Everyone comes here for Thanksgiving--veterans, senior citizens, people who have nowhere else to go,” she said.

More than 400 people volunteered to cook and serve the holiday dinner this year, said Enriquez, who spent three months with Garcia and his family planning the event. So many volunteered that Garcia and Enriquez had to turn some away.

One volunteer who made the cut, Carlos Acosta, 21, served soft drinks to diners seated along tables in the restaurant parking lot. He and eight other students from Irvine Valley College decided to help at La Casa Garcia this year.

“It’s great talking to people, being with people and knowing they will have something to eat,” Acosta said. “We’ll come back next year.”

While Wednesday was a record day for travelers hopping on airline flights for the holiday, Thursday was comparatively lonely at John Wayne Airport. As of Thursday evening, only about 28 people had used the airport’s “white courtesy phone” paging service.

“We usually have over 300 pages,” airport spokeswoman Nghia Nguyen said. “We won’t expect heavy travel again until Sunday.”

If airport traffic was sparse, families heading out of town on the freeways made up for it. Roadside eateries on the major freeways were jammed as travelers took a break from bumper-to-bumper speeds heading to Los Angeles, San Diego and Riverside.

“We had thousands of pies,” said Ben Anguiano, 18, who works at a Coco’s Restaurant just off of the Riverside Freeway. “Now, we have none left. Not one pie left.”

The restaurant did brisk business taking advantage of the traffic-weary looking for a quick stretch of the legs and a pie for Grandma.

“The 91 was pretty much a nightmare,” said Steve Copeland, 36, manager of a Chevron gas station near the restaurant. “They’ve been basically sitting in traffic for awhile and they need to stop and take a break.”

Copeland said Thanksgiving is one of the busiest days of the year for the gas station and other shops near the freeway exit, located between Anaheim and Corona.

Traffic was heavy flowing out of the county throughout most of the morning and early afternoon on the San Diego and Riverside freeways, the California Highway Patrol reported.

Far from the traffic woes, those attending the Friendship Shelter’s holiday dinner at Laguna Beach’s Bluebird Park were treated to turkey and a free massage.

“That’s my way of giving thanks,” said masseuse Mitch Goldstein while giving massages to two people at a time. “Massage a trois,” he called it.

Felipe Martinez, 30, came to enjoy the balmy weather and the company of some newfound friends with his wife and their two sons--6 months and 6 years old.

“The first [year] we came to the park we didn’t have a lot a money,” Martinez said. “That’s also why we came this year.”

The retired couple from Laguna Woods brought their turkey dinner along to share with others.

“It’s an American tradition,” said 38-year-old Niclas Kruger, an artist from Sweden. “The good atmosphere and meeting people, that’s the most important thing.”

Times staff writer Jean Pasco contributed to this report.

* HOLIDAY WARNING: Those hectic shopping days are keeping police busy as well. B4