Gov. Chris Christie and his wife, Mary Pat, spent more than an hour Wednesday plating and serving Thanksgiving meals at the soup kitchen at St. John's Church in Newark.
After scooping mashed potatoes into foam containers in the church kitchen, Christie headed outside to a tent to hand out meals to a long line of men.
Barbara Maran, the director of the soup kitchen, said they feed an average of 400 to 600 people a day, but were expecting a much smaller crowd because of the nasty weather. Still, dozens traveled through the sleet and snow for turkey with all the fixings, hot soup and slices of pie.
"Every holiday as you get older, I've found, becomes more special," Christie told reporters. "You have more to be thankful for and you have more things to be thinking about."
Members of the Christie administration have been participating in their fourth annual "Season of Service" by volunteering around the state in recent days, packing and delivering Thanksgiving meals.
The Christies, meanwhile, are hosting a large family gathering at their home in Mendham on Thursday. They're expecting about 28 people, including three state troopers.
Christie said he'll be making his famous mashed potatoes, while Mary Pat will be making her signature puree of turnip dish and a "very traditional" stuffing. As they were volunteering, she said their four kids were at home setting the tables.
It's Christie' second Thanksgiving since his lap-band weight-loss surgery and he said he has to be more strategic about what he eats.
"The stuff that you really want the most, eat first," he said.
