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Orlando officers hand out 800 Christmas dinners to locals in need

By Sarah Wilson and Johny Fernandez
By Sarah Wilson and Johny Fernandez
The Orlando Police Department teamed up with local businesses Friday to give 800 Christmas meals to families in need. 
Officers handed out more than 800 ready-to-cook turkey dinners to residents in need on Friday as part of its fourth annual Christmas Dinner From a Cop program. Each meal feeds a family of four.
"This is a great opportunity to eat with OPD. They giving us ham, so we can enjoy Christmas," resident Karen Walters said. 
People started lining up for the meal at 7 a.m., two hours before distribution began. By 11 a.m., the 800 meals were gone.

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"I'm very, very proud of the Orlando community that has proven time and time again that we are a caring community and that we are always looking for opportunities to do something and give something back," Police Chief Orlando Rolon said.
In 2015 and 2016, the department said it handed out 500 meals. This year, officers said they were able to increase that amount, thanks to support from local businesses.
"You don't have to worry about a meal for Christmas. They had it last year, and I didn't have to worry about nothing," Walters said.
In four years, officers said they've handed out more than 3,000 meals.
"It's very great because a lot of people don't have food to eat. Because I went to a place where they had the shelter and they didn't have nothing to eat," resident Joan Walters said.
Watch Eyewitness News at 4 p.m. to hear the story of a family that is benefiting from the meal.

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Cox Media Group

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