NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — Two young brothers in North Charleston are helping lead a community effort to fight food insecurity, one Thanksgiving meal at a time.
Melo and Taj Amir Pierce, along with their grandfather, Chef Dwayne Pierce, hosted a Thanksgiving meal giveaway at Daniel Jenkins Academy on Monday, handing out 150 meals to students, families, and neighbors in need.
“We want other kids to see that there are some positive things in the community,” said Chef Pierce, who helped organize the event with his grandsons.
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“Better to Give Than Receive”
Organizers say the event is meant to inspire young people by showing what giving back looks like in action.
“Children learn by example,” said event organizer and school volunteer Maria McKnight. “For them to come out and give their time, it would enhance other young people to see it’s better to give than receive.”
The Pierce brothers collected donations, helped prepare the food, and passed out meals with big smiles.
“Our favorite thing about this event is having fun,” they said.
They also shared why giving back matters to them.
“You have to give people food,” Melo said.
“And save the community from being homeless and helping them out,” Taj added.
A Family Mission to Help Others
Chef Pierce says the Thanksgiving giveaway is just one part of a much larger mission he hopes becomes a year-round effort.
“We are doing this for Thanksgiving, but the message I wanted to send is we need to do this consistently year-round,” he said. “We need to start having more positive conversations. We need to start engaging with each other more. This is a community that is a low-income community, but they’re beautiful people.”
He also explained that the brothers are learning skills for life and business.
“We wanted to show the young people in this community that entrepreneurs can be born early,” he said. “These two young men own a piece of the LLC, so every time we do a catering job, they make money as children.”
Chef Pierce hopes the meal giveaway encourages others to step up and support their neighbors.
“We need to invest our time, our businesses,” he said. “The community can see somebody out here cares about them. They’re just as important as everybody else.”
Spotlighting Daniel Jenkins Academy
The event also brought attention to Daniel Jenkins Academy, Charleston County’s alternative program that supports students who need additional guidance before returning to their home schools.
“We work with behaviors, attendance, SEL—supporting the whole child,” said Principal Quintell Middleton. “When they are restored to their homeschool, the strategies taught here stay with them not only at school, but in future life decisions.”
The school frequently partners with local mentors and hosts monthly “lunch and learn” sessions to expose students to careers, military options, and motivational speakers, Middleton said.
Assistant Principal Latasha Edwards added that the school holds regular food giveaways as well.
“Each month we have food giveaways every second Thursday here at Daniel Jenkins,” she said. “We give groceries away to the community and everyone is welcome. We never turn anyone around.”
A Message to the Community
As they packed up after the meal giveaway, the Pierce brothers shared a simple reminder for other kids and neighbors across the Lowcountry:
“Make good choices and be strong,” he said.
Empowering his grandsons while serving others is the heart of the work.
“Now we are giving them a foundation they can utilize when they get older,” he said. “They can continue it, give an example to other kids in the community, and show that not everything is negative. There’s so much positive here.”
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Dining and Cooking